Mon, Nov 24th - 1:53PM

Veggie Tales - The Priates Who Don't Do Anything

Click here for The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything DVD

Plot:

From the creators of 2002's widely successful "Jonah - A Veggie Tales Movie" comes a new story of heroism in the beloved Veggie Tales world.  The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything.  Now, we follow the comic misadventures of three animated veggie pals who reluctantly set sail for adventure and discover that real heroes don't have to be tall, strong, handsome or even human.

Garrrrr!  Working at the Pieces of Ate Dinner Theater is less than exciting when you're a busboy.  For three moping misfits' Elliot, Sedgewick and George (Larry the Cucumber, Mr. Lunt and Pa Grape) all they dream of is the day when they can ditch their dishrags and take stage to star in the big priate show.

But with Elliot's timidity, Sedgewick's laziness and George's lack of self-confidence, it seems as if the day to prove who they really are will never come.

Things are about to change when a mysterious ball drops from the sky and lands at the unlikely seafarers' feet.  A 'Helpseeker' sent from the past in search of heroes, the artifact sets in motion a series of events that drags the friends back to the 17th century and into the belly of certain danger.  The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything must each face their dears becoming unlikely heroes in a battle to rescue a royal family from an evil tyrant, and themselves from living the life of common couch potatoes.

Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Pat Alexander (Dallas, TX), November 06, 2008
I bought it for my five year old grandson in NY. He will love it! It will be mailed to him for Christmas. My five year old granddaughter got to see it before I ship it. She liked it as well! Earlier she told me he did not like the Veggie Tales anymore, but she liked this one.

4.5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed by Richard Primo (Medford, NJ), November 06, 2008

I purchased this DVD for my two year old grandson and not only did he enjoy it but the whole family watched it and thoroughly enjoyed it. We're all singing the theme song now!

5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed by Tom (Olympia, WA), November 06, 2008

The grand kids and their Papa were spellbound. The message was good, the music fun. Enjoyed by all.

Includes approximately 90 minutes of bonus features.

Special Bonus Features:

• "Becoming a Real-Life Hero" (Video Feature): Takes a look at what it takes to become a hero in public service roles. It's a fun, behind the scenes look at firehouses, police station, etc guided by Larry the Cucumber (Elliot as videographer) and kid friends.
• "Going to Sea" (Video Feature): Takes you on a visit to a marina and an exploration of life on the water. Guided by Mr. Lunt (Sedgewick as videographer) who is looking for pirates, you'll enjoy the ensuing comedy as he talks with yacht owners, fishing boats and others.
• A Parent's Guide Interactive Book: Gives a discussion guide and tools for character building reflecting the values of the movie characters.
• "Making A Veggie Pirate Movies" (Video Feature): Interviews with the production staff about the creation of the film, as well as location shots of the animation studio during production.
• "Why We Do It" (Video Feature): Interviews with production staff speaking on the reasons for making the story, and discussion of lessons within the story.
• Art Gallery: An interactive feature that shows concept images from the film along with commentary by the design staff.
• Studio Commentary: Feature-length audio track with the production staff from the film.
• "Character Commentary" (Video Feature): Edited 5- to 7-minute piece of highlighted scenes with audio commentary from various characters from the film.
• "How to Draw" (Video Feature): Features concept artists with kids following along as they draw various characters from the film.
• Pirate Sing-Along: Sing-Along versions of the songs from the film including the songs "Rock Monster" and "Yo, Ho Hero"
• Treasure Detector Matching Game
• Pirates Trivia Video Game
• Pirate 101 with Willory and Elliot: Learn to act and talk like a pirate!
• Fashion Plank Game: Interactive dress-up activity
• Interactive Storybook
• Bonus Clips: Animated clips of the characters shown as a payoff for playing games feature alternate endings or outtakes from the film.
• Easter Eggs

Related Products:

Books In A Boat (3 board books)



Helpers Are Heroes! Veggie Tales Book



The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything Original Movie Soundtrack



Pirates 200 Pc. Puzzle





And that's just my point.

Fri, Nov 21st - 1:55PM

Switchfoot - The Best Yet

Click here for Switchfoot's The Best Yet CD

Thu, Nov 20th - 1:48PM

Lori Wick: Jessie, Big Sky Dreams #3 -- Video Interview: Leave the Candle Burning, Tucker Mills Trilogy #3

Click here for Jessie, Big Sky Dreams #3

Click here to see a video interview of Lori about her thrid book in the Tucker Mills Trilogy called Leave the Candle Burning; it's the third video down the page

Other books by Lori Wick


And that's just my point.

Tue, Nov 18th - 4:10PM

Operation Christmas Child

Click here for information on Operation Christmas Child


It's that time of year again and thousands of schools, churches and organizations are gearing up for Operation Christmas child. What is Operation Christmas Child? It's one of the word's largest Christmas charity projects. Supported by Samaritans Purse, Operation Christmas Child's goal is to get a shoe box into the hands of as many needy children around the world as possible.

Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has collected and hand-delivered more than 61 million gift-filled shoe boxes to children in some 130 countries. Starting with an empty shoe box, donors provide simple items most people take for granted - soap, toothbrushes, small toys and school supplies - then wrap and deliver it to one of the several nearby drop off locations scattered throughout participating cities. For many kids who receive shoe box gifts, it will be the first gift they have ever received.

One of the things I like about the shoe box program is that when the shoe boxes are delivered to the children, the gospel of Jesus Christ is intentionally shared and follow up is provided. Operation Christmas Child focuses on the true meaning of Christmas - Jesus Christ - God's greatest gift. Separate from the shoe box and when culturally appropriate, children are offered "The Greatest Gift of All," an illustrated Bible storybook in the local language. When possible, children can further explore a faith in Jesus Christ through a voluntary Bible study program.

Another reason why I like this program is because I can participate in it with my children and it is a really hands-on way to share with them that there are other children around the world who don't have as much as them and that we need to share what we have with others. This year my two oldest children, Hope and Paige, each got a shoe box and chose whether they wanted to give it to a boy or girl in their age range, then we went to the store and chose out items we thought were appropriate. We packed the boxes and added in a picture of ourselves with a small note wishing the child who received the box a Merry Christmas.

I have provided a link to Operation Christmas Child's web site at the top of this blog so you can find out more information, drop off locations etc. Collection week this year is between November 24th and 29th.

That's just my point.

Fri, Nov 14th - 9:00PM

Work At Home Mom (WAHM)

I'm excited about this blog because I get to talk about one of my favorite topics.  In fact it's so great that it has it's own acronym.  WAHM or better known as the work at home mom.  There are whole websites dedicated to this topic.  My favorite is www.cwham.com a christian website dedicated to the work at home mom.

There are a lot of rumors and misconceptions going around about work at home jobs, some are true, some are not.  I am a work at home mom and have been working from home for over a year now; making pretty good money as well.  I never would have considered it if it hadn't of been for a good friend of mine from church.  I was worried about scams and dead ends or not getting paid.  She had been doing it for a year or so when she told me about it and I trusted her.  

The company I work through is called www.contractxchange.com.  They are based in Canada but they also hire people in the U.S. and the U.K.  It is all mostly customer service work so if you enjoy helping customers and know your way around a phone and computer this type of work could be for you.  You do have to pay for your own training up front and the costs range from $150 - $300.  This made me a little nervous because I wasn't sure if I would get my monies worth or not.  I had nothing to worry about, I made my money back and then some.  I get paid on the 1st and the 16th of the month and pay averages out to between $11.00 - $15.00 an hour Canadian. I have applied for work at home jobs that don't charge you for training or ones that pay you while your training but the wait time for these types of jobs is around 4 - 6 months unless you are highly specialized in your field because around 200 -300 people apply for these types of jobs on a daily basis.  The average wait time for a Contract Exchange job is 1 month including training time if the client is hiring, if not, the wait could be 2 - 3 months. 

Now, I am not going to tell you that I made millions and am semi-retired because any job whether work at home or not is hard work and doesn't make money overnight.  What stay at home customer service work will do is put money in the bank, let you see your kids a bit more and there's no commute but you wont make money sitting around in your p.j.'s and working 2 hours a day.  (Well actually, you could get away with the p.j.'s.) Anyone who tells you different is lying.

In this type of work, you are considered your own boss and have to pay your own taxes.  You are basically contracting your services out to the client.  Where Contract Xchange comes in is, they are basically the middle man, they let you know which companies are looking for contractors and do the training.  You get all the benefits of owning your own business including, choosing when and how much you want to work.  I wont get into the "being your own boss" benefits because I really believe that your client is your boss.

As far as the work goes, most clients pay per call but some do pay hourly.  The pay per call idea also made me nervous because you are not guaranteed how many calls you will get per hour.  Most of the time the call flow is fine but all of these clients do have slow periods just like most businesses.  You will have a bit of a struggle if you need full time hours with full time pay during these slow periods.  How I combat this is, I take on more than one client.  Two or three clients will have different slow periods and I adjust my hours accordingly.

You do have to sign a contract for all these type of jobs but they are designed to protect you as well as your client. The clients have a mandatory amount of hours they like you to work a week but they are minimal. They average from 5 - 15 hrs. a week. After that it is up to you how much you want to work.

The only down side to this type of work is that you can't have kids or loud animals around. Your background noise needs to be kept to a minimum so that you sound professional and the clients do listen to your calls to make sure it's quiet. You can put your kids in day care or have someone come in to take care of your children. If you are okay working part time then you can work during your child's nap time or work after they go to bed at night.

I have worked for Sears, Direct Energy, and CAA (Canadian Automobile Association). Right now, I am working for A.C.T. Conferencing. All these jobs are great. What I have found is that the clients who charge more for training, pay more money but the work is a lot more stressful. I opted out of the stressful jobs and got into the conferencing company because there was less stress involved. I am only with one client at the moment because I am currently working on another work at home project.

I am currently involved in owning and operating my own online Christian book store. If you think everyone thought I was crazy trying a work at home job well you should have heard them when I came up with this! I found a web site called www.30fold.com and for $200.00 U.S., they provide you with a completely turn key business. What I mean by this is, they provide you with a web site and you can customize it with your logo and store name and can add web pages to it. You don't have to warehouse any products or anything. The distributor is called Deeper Shopping and they house and ship all the products for you. It's a cool concept called drop shipping and Deeper Shopping has one of the largest product lines available. 30fold supports you by having weekly training calls to tell you different ways to market your online store as well as letting you ask questions. They also have a phone#, email address and a support website. They even send out sales type newsletters to people who sign up for your newsletter. All these and many other services are provided for a monthly fee of $25.00. If you help other people sign up for an online book store you can make a commission as well but if you are not interested in this option you don't have to do so.

Of course, like I said earlier, no job is easy. Just because you have a website doesn't mean people will automatically come and buy from you. They don't know it exists so guess what, you have to market it. Marketing on the internet is a lot different from traditional marketing. There are tons of different ways to market a web site but most of them are trying to do only one thing and that is to get your web site on the first page of all the major search engines like Google, Yahoo and MSN. To do this you have to have about a zillion links all over the internet leading people to your website. This creates two things. You get customers who click on your links and visit your store as well as the various search engines sending out little spiders or feelers that read your links and say "hey there are a lot of these, maybe I should put this site on my front page" or something like that, I haven't got it all down pat 'cause I am just starting. Anyway, I spend my day talking on Christian forums about my website, joining social book marking sites, applying to thousands of Christian search engines and doing this, blogging! All while I am working at my conferencing job through Contract Exchange. It keeps me busy. You can check out my online Christian web store at www.sonrisechristian.com and while your there, don't forget to sign up for our newsletter!

And that's...just my point.

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