Back to School Farm Kid Style with Carhartt

*I received a product to facilitate my review.

All views and opinions shared are my own. *

Guess what I got in the mail yesterday?  Mr. K's school registration information.  I guess it is official then, it's time to start getting ready to go back to school.  I have to admit, it makes me a little sad because I'm going to miss having Mr. K around each day.  But at the same time, I know how much he loves school, so it makes me excited for him.

One thing Mr. K is excited about, to get ready to go to Kindergarten, is to go shopping for school supplies.  I remember this too as a child.  There's is just something fun and thrilling about getting new pencils, new notebooks, and of course, a new backpack!  When I showed Mr. K Carhartt's new line of school backpacks, he quickly (and excitedly) chose the Camo Junior Bib Pocket Pack.

Mr. K and his new Carhartt backpack!

The Junior Bib Pocket Backpack is the perfect size for my soon to be Kindergartner.  I don't have to worry about it hitting the back of his knees, but yet there is plenty of room in it for him to carry his folders and pair of shoes.  I also like that the backpack is water repellent for those rainy and snowy school days during the year.  Mr. K is most excited for all of the pockets!  There is a front organization panel that he says he's going to put pencils and pictures he draws in, and he is going to put his "bus toys" (he has a 45 minute bus ride to school) in the front zippered pocket.  The front zippered pocket will give his toys their own space, separate from the roomy main compartment that will hold his school work.  In the end, with a name like Carhartt, I know the backpack will be dependable, strong and durable.

So, would you like for your student to get ready to go back to school with a new Carhartt backpack?  I'm giving away one of Carhartt's new backpacks to a lucky reader in two weeks.  Be sure to sign-up for the drawing through the Rafflecopter form below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What was your favorite thing about going back to school?  Be sure to check out Carhartt's new backpacks and let me know which backpack you like best (Traditional or Junior Bib Pocket) and who you'd like to get a backpack for.  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

Knee High by the 4th of July

Knee high by the 4th of July is an old farmer saying and benchmark for a good corn crop.  But with improved seed genetics and farming practices, farmers expect their corn to be at least waist high if not head high (or higher, like we are seeing this year) on our farm in North Iowa.

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It has become tradition for us to take a Knee High by the 4th of July photo every year.  It is a fun way to document our farm family, as well as our crop progress for the year.  Check out past years - 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012.  This year's corn crop looks the most similar to 2012, but add three more kids!

We hope you all had a great Independence Day!  What was the best part of your day?  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

Comments for a Cause - KaBOOM!

Happy 4th of July everyone!  Before I start our weekend's worth of celebrating our nation's independence, I had to share about Comments for a Cause.  I had a great time creating awareness (and even getting inspired in the kitchen) about Alex's Lemonade Stand in June.  Thanks to the 47 comments last month, I am donating $23.50 to this great cause that raises money and awareness of childhood cancer "one cup at a time."

In the month of July I'm excited to be donating $0.50 for every comment made on my blog to KaBOOM!.

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Just yesterday, the kids and I spent a couple of hours at our local playground.  My kids love the freedom of running around, exploring each piece of equipment, and having fun together.  I realize that not all kids have the same opportunity as mine do.

Have you ever heard of a play desert?  Play deserts are locations primarily determined by quality of playspaces, walking distance, density of children and density of low-income households.  That is where KaBOOM! comes to play.  KaBOOM! works with city leaders through their Playful City USA program to address play deserts, and then offers grants to help them respond to their needs.

KaBOOM! is a national organization that has one simple goal - to protect and preserve playability into the daily lives of all kids, especially in America's low-income neighborhoods.  They do this by creating places to play, inspiring communities to promote and support play, and urging the national discussion about the importance of play in nurturing healthy and productive lives.  Founded in 1996, the organization has built or improved 16,300 playgrounds through the power of over 1 million volunteer hours.  To date, KaBOOM! has served and made an impact for 8.1 million children.

Do you live in a Playful City or have you heard of the program before?  Remember to Comment for a Cause!

Country Fair Blog Party: July 2016

It's hard to believe it is July 1st! July is the heart of County Fair season in Iowa, and is at the heart of this Country Fair Blog Party.  Before I share how you can link up to this month's Blog Hop, here are the Blue Ribbon Winners from June's Country Fair Blog Party:

During last month's Blog Party, Oak Hill Homestead's 10 Things I've Stopped Buying, was the most viewed post from the link-up!  Congrats to Kathi on getting the most clicks and receiving a Country Fair Blog Party Blue Ribbon!  This post includes several things that she now makes at home, rather than buying in the store, to not only save some money but to have control on what all is in the product.

Each month I ask you to comment on what blog post you liked the most from the link-up and this month's Reader's Choice (and a favorite of mine as well) Country Fair Blog Party Blue Ribbon goes to A Delightful Glow's Rhubarb Surprise Pie.  Isn't Deborah's combination of a crumb crust and cutouts beautiful on this pie before she baked it.  You better check out this post to get the recipe and to discover what the surprise is!

My final Country Fair Blog Party Blue Ribbon goes to Learning As I Go's Guilt Free Strawberry Freeze.  I'm all about finding alternatives to ice cream.  Even though my family (and I) loved going on our Iowa Ice Cream Road Trip last month in honor of June Dairy Month, I know I don't need to eat that much ice cream, especially weekly.  In fact, now that Miss R is six weeks old, I'm working on eating healthier and exercising daily.  But that still doesn't take away the craving for something cool and sweet at night!  So I'm excited to try Katy's Guilt Free Strawberry Freeze soon!  It'll be a great recipe to add to my healthy, cool treat recipe arsenal with my 3 Ingredient Strawberry Lemonade Sorbet.

I can't wait to see what great posts get linked up to this month's Country Fair Blog Party.  Country Fairs are all about food, family, friends, farming, animals, arts and crafts, canning, baking and more.  And that is what our our blog hop is all about too.  Feel free to join our Country Fair by linking up to 3 of your posts.  This blog hop is a great opportunity to check out new blogs, and if you blog yourself, have your posts reach a new audience.  Be sure to visit some other party goers and let them know you are stopping by through the Country Fair Blog Party.

Also, be sure to visit my fellow co-hosts:
Jan of Tip Garden
Laurie of Country LINKed and
Nicole of Tales of a Kansas Farm Mom

We're excited to see everything you share this month!  What is your favorite link from this month's Country Fair Blog Party?  Whichever post is mentioned the most in the comments will receive my "Readers Choice" Blue Ribbon next month.  Remember to Comments for a Cause!

An InLinkz Link-up