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

Are you navigation-ally challenged like I am? I have a hard time with left and right, and almost no concept of North, South, East, and West. During the summer it seems like we’re always going someplace new. We try to take weekly field trips, and then there are baseball games, and trips to the lake. It seems like we always spend more time in the car during the summer, on the go.

I have a GPS system in my car, but I don’t update it nearly enough. I recently learned that NAVTEQ is the company whose technology and maps drive most of the in-car navigation systems. They’re the system behind most of the leading brands of GPS-enabled devices in the U.S. You can find out if they’re the technology behind your in car navigation system by stopping by www.updateyourmap.com.

Updating your system is easy, just go to www.updateyourmap.com and follow the drop-down menus which correspond to your GPS device. Installing updated navigation maps, with the latest road changes, and places of interest only takes a few minutes.

I’m sure it will save me tons of time and keep me from the frustration of ending up on the wrong road, or at the wrong address this summer.

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

I’m always the last minute shopper for Father’s Day, but this year I’m trying to do a little pre-planning (can you believe it?), so I’ve been looking around for that perfect gift for my dad and my husband.

Today I was checking out Bliss Living. I always thought they just had gifts for women, but I was wrong. They have a full line of gifts for Dad:

• Father’s Day gift ideas you can personalize  with their name, or a short message.
• Gifts for the man cave.
• Gift ideas for the sports fan.
• Business and office gifts.
• Gifts for dads who like to be outdoors.
• Jewelry ideas for dad.

I might have to get my husband the man cave sign. My son thinks it would be a cool gift for dad. I’m always teasing him about his man cave barn. It’s his own little home away from home. When his friends come over on Friday nights they know where to find him. Of course I hang out there on occasion myself…. especially on the weekends.

Even though Mother’s Day is past, don’t forget about mom! If you want to make her feel special too, Bliss Living has a wide assortment of jewelry for mom, for one stop shopping.

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

WeReward is a new service from Izea that lets you earn points for completing real world check ins and tasks. Each reward point is worth a penny, so the more points you earn, the more money you make.

WeReward integrates with Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare, so you can get your badges, share and earn points for something you’re already doing.

You download the application to your iPhone from itunes, connect it to your social media accounts, and you’re ready to check out the opportunities available. There are two different ways to earn rewards, check ins and tasks.

To earn check in rewards, simply check in at local participating businesses. Once you find an opportunity that sounds interesting, click on it to find out the details. Then just complete the task, and check in with an update about your experience.

Tasks are like check ins, but you don’t have to be in a certain location.

You can also earn reward points for referring your friends.

You can find more information on this new service at WeReward.com, or check out this video that walks you through the process step by step, and explains exactly what you need to do to participate.

If you think you’d like to give WeReward a try, visit the Social Spark website to Download the App.

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

I recently had the opportunity to give EndALL insect spray a try in my backyard orchard and garden. My favorite part is that it’s a ready to use spray. No mixing or watering down. Just take it off the shelf and you’re ready to go. It’s still early in the year here in my Ohio garden, but the fruit trees have just finished blooming, so I thought I’d take EndALL for a test run in our back yard orchard.

I’m not a big fan of insecticides, and I’m always on the lookout for an organic alternative that will minimize the damage to the beneficial insects in my garden, and have little or no environmental impact. EndALL is safe to use on flowers, fruits, vegetables lawn, landscape, ornamentals and houseplants.

I decided to use EndALL on my fruit trees. They’re just finishing up blooming, and setting fruit, so it was perfect timing to keep bugs off the new fruit.

I only have a couple fruit trees, and most of them are dwarf trees, so it doesn’t take much to spray them.  The spray went far enough that I could cover the whole tree with a few squirts on each side.

I can’t wait to use EndALL later this summer on the squash bugs that always seem to invade my garden about mid June. I’m going to have it ready and waiting for the first sign of infection.

I still plan to use the insecticide sparingly, even if it is organic, it can harm some beneficial insects. If you’re looking for an organic alternative to insecticides for those times when there’s just no other way to get rid of damaging insects, this is a great choice. Make sure you read and follow the package directions to keep the environmental impact to a minimum.

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Alvin and the Chipmunks. All opinions are 100% mine.

We went to see Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel on the big screen right before Christmas. We haven’t had a chance to get the new DVD yet, but my son’s been begging me to get it, so I’m sure we’ll add it to our collection soon. He loved the movie when we went to see at the theater.

We even downloaded some of the songs right after we went got home. That’s why I’m excited about the Double DVD Pack. It includes “The Squeak Along” Bonus Disc, with more music, mayhem and all-new singalongs which my son will love!

I remember singing Alvin and the Chipmunks Christmas songs when I was a child, and I loved watching the cartoons. It’s so fun to share that with my son today. We dance around the house singing and just have a blast with it.

Of course we had to go check out the Munk Yourself website and make our own crazy version of the chipmunks. My son had a blast making his chipmunk with a punk rock look. I made a Brittany Munk for myself.

I love that it’s a family friendly film we can add to our DVD collection. You can get More Munk Mayhem at FoxFamilyFlicks.com. The movie premiered on DVD on March 30th so it’s available for anyone to buy it now.

Do you have a gardener on your Christmas list this year? Why not give them a Garden-Opoly game. Players can buy their garden favorites, get aphid infestations, and care for their properties. Get a dandelion attack this January, and it’ll feel just like summer in the garden. Test your gardening skills against the other members of your household.

If you’d rather try your hand at running a farm try Farm-Opoly

I love to take photographs, I always have the camera in front of my face snapping a picture of something. I love to use my photos on my blogs and websites.At the top of my Christmas list this year is Wacom Graphire Bluetooth 6×8 Tablet. I keep telling my husband I need one of these to edit my photos. This handy tool is also great for creating graphics. It’s supposed to be excellent for detailed, and precision work. I love to design, so I think I’d have a blast with this little toy.

The tablet also includes Adobe Photoshop Elements 3, Painter Essentials 2, and and Color Efex Pro 2GE. The lithium batteries last up to 25 hours before they have to be charged again. I just need to keep dropping hints to my husband.