Epiphanie Lyric Camera Bag that I won (review)

I see giveaways online all the time for camera bags, and I started entering. Imagine my surprise when I won the giveaway by Sew Many Savings. I really had my eye on an Epiphanie Camera Bag for a long time.

I picked the Lyric in brown. I wanted brown since it would match more clothes and Fall is here. First off, I am a short gal. I am 4' 11". The last thing I need is a big bag weighing me down. Currently, I only have one lens for my DSLR, but I still carry many things with me, and I am working on saving money for more lenses. One of the reasons I picked the Lyric is because it is a slim bag at 4 inches wide, but the bag can still hold many things. Most camera bags are twice that. The exact measurements for the whole camera bag are: 13"L x 4"W x 15"H (This is from Epiphanie's website). I also still have a preschooler so I do carry around wipes and a change of clothes. (I did not factor that in when I was taking pictures, but I still have room in this bag to carry both)

Okay, now let's get to my new bag. What a wonderful surprise when the mailman brought this to my door! I was expecting another package so I did let out a thrill of joy knowing my camera bag had arrived. It really did feel like Christmas!

I opened the box and was met with this cute sticker:

Once I took the plastic off, I was met with this sturdy dustcover:

Here is what you are waiting for:

 

I love the feel and look of this bag.

The cutest charm EVER:

The shoulder strap is adorable as well, not to mention very soft. I did take the pad off the extra long strap that came with the bag and put it on the braided strap (I found a small tiny tear on the shoulder pad when I was putting it on, but it is not noticeable. I will watch it as I use it and see what happens. I am sure I can buy a replacement pad later if I need to either from the company or ebay)

Here is the back of the bag. My kindle fit easily with plenty of room to space. Would easily hold an ipad.

A few stickers that were in the bag waiting for me:

The inside of the bag: (These later pictures were taken with my iphone)

In these pictures you can see my Nikon with lens attached, wallet, kindle (in pink case), battery charger, two black cases that have my lens filters, lipstick, hand sanitizer and pink/white case that holds my camera accessories such as lens pen, memory card, etc. Plenty of room for more items. The bag comes with four inserts that you can move around anyway you want. I took one out as I only need three right now. The back zipper held my kindle. I used the zipper compartments on the front to hold my battery charger, lipstick and hand sanitizer. I did not even use the one inside the bag. I do not always carry such a big wallet so when I carry my smaller one, I will have even more room, and I will most likely put that in the inside zipper. I usually do not carry both filter cases. I just wanted to show how much room you have. Also, love this..... I could easily put a small jacket inside on top of all of this and zip it up!

The bag feels soft next to my body with everything in it, and it did not feel too heavy. I did carry the shoulder strap over my body, but I could have put on my shoulder and not felt too short. 

I hope this review helps. I plan on reviewing this on video soon as I could not find any online. I will post a video link once I have used this bag more.
 

Personalize Linen notecards from Belle Announcements

Received another happy today from the contest I won!! Belle Announcements sent me 25 beautiful personalize folded notecards with envelopes. I love pink and green, and they were delivered in a sturdy box to store them. I know I will keep the box long after I use all the cards.

These notecards have a fantastic feel and look to them, and I cannot wait to use them! You can feel the high quality when you hold them in your hand. It’s time to write and send photos to family and friends.

Check out Belle Announcements on her website:

 Facebook And her Blog.

I have been following Belle Announcements for a while as she not only creates beautiful works of stationary, invites (birthdays, wedding, etc) and baby shower announcements, but much more. Please follow the links above. She is also the one that hosted the contest so if I had not been following her, I would not have won all these wonderful goodies. I still have two more prizes coming that I cannot wait to blog about.

Beautiful prints from Ann-Margaret

Happy dance… I received my second prize from the contest I won. Today, I received, not one, but two prints from Ann-Margaret..Artist-Designer-Photographer.

Here is the adorable postcard I received: 

Here is a pretty card with a handwritten note from Ann-Margaret on the back.

Check out these super sweet prints!

Isn’t Cooper adorable?

 

Look at the whimsical mermaid! (She was my surprise) 

Please check out Ann-Margaret’s website

Her blog.

You can also find her on Facebook. 

What beautiful gifts!! 

Handmade journal from The Nib and Quill

I received my gorgeous homemade journal from The Nib and Quill today that I won in a contest. Check out the detail just in the wrapping! The little book that arrived is one that my daughter is going to use as a bible for Barbies.

The journal has a wonderful feel to it and feels very durable. I could not be more pleased with this beautiful journal. Imagine my surprise when it arrived with cute cameras on it, and I LOVE photography! Check out her shop on Etsy and her blog. This journal would be an incredible gift for someone that is normally hard to shop for say a teenager or adult who loves to write, draw or enjoys a small scrapbook.

List of Adoption Books and Movies

List of Adoption Books and Movies

     There have been so many adoption theme books and movies lately. Obviously, I have not read or watched them all, but I thought I would give my input on what I have read and seen recently. I would love others input as well in the comments. I am not going to review my own adoption book. You can read the reviews on Amazon if you want to know more about my book. Be sure to check out the reviews on the books and movies listed in this post as well. I will post links throughout this post. You may find some of these movies on Neflix or Amazon Prime. 

     We read so many books about 9 years ago, that I cannot remember all of them, but I know we had to read a lot of “how to adopt books” to feel somewhat comfortable on how to pick an agency or attorney. I am not including the books we read back then because I cannot remember much about them.

    These are domestic adoption books and one foster/adopt book. I read a lot about international adoption during the beginning of our journey, but I do not remember which ones.

   First off, we rarely watch movies without our kids so it is rare for me to see a movie without them. So most of the movies on this list are family friendly unless I state otherwise. Spoiler alerts ahead:

Despicable Me 1 and Despicable Me 2

We (me, husband and kids) enjoyed both of these movies. The first one did not portray adoption well at first, but the movie did have a good ending. The second did a much better job. I know some people that did not give these movies a chance since the children were given away in the first movie, but the main character, Mr. Gru, needed to know what he lost to find that he did indeed love them and did need them and wanted to be a parent. He was not looking to be a dad. He was evil, remember? Again, it had a good ending. We watch these movies all the time.

Lilo and Stitch

Lilo and her sister, Nani, lost their parents. So Nani takes care of both of them. Being young, she makes a lot of mistakes and risks loosing her sister Lilo. Stitch is an alien who is looking for a place to fit in. There is a social worker in the movie. This is a good movie, and there is a happy ending.

Annie

Wow, who hasn’t seen Annie?  LOVE this movie. We have to take in account that this movie took place back when laws were not enforce for the good of kids.  So Ms. Hanniagan was not the best role model for kids. Another happy ending.

Anne of Green Gables

Adoption is not heavily talked about in this series except in the beginning of the movie. Anne is adopted. Other than that, it is not mention much after she lives with her new parents. I have always loved this sweet series. All girls love Anne.

Kung Fu Panda 1 and Kung Fu Panda 2

These movies are hilarious. They hardly get into adoption themes in the first one, but it is known that he is adopted. We find out more about his biological family in the 2^nd one, which is sad as they had no choice. He loves his dad, the one that adopted him. Excellent movies.  

Meet the Robinsons

My daughter saw this at school and enjoyed it. I did not like the beginning of this movie when I saw it. Each potential adoptive family that met him kept passing the boy and did not want to adopt him. So much rejection. It went on and on. My daughter said the movie was funny, and he got his family in the end. So I will leave it up to you. 

The Rescuers 

Penny is kidnapped and needs help. She wants a family. Another happy ending.

Tarzan

Tarzan is adopted by, Kala, a female Gorilla. Her son recently died as did Tarzan’s biological parents. Tarzan searches for where he belongs throughout the movie.

Hercules

Born a God, but stolen and left on Earth. A nice family adopts him. He continues to search for “where he belongs”, but discovers it was where he was after all. We love the music.

I know there are most likely more adoption theme kid’s movies, but these are what come to mind.

October Baby

(Adult themes due to abortion) I would not recommend this movie for children.

This movie was quite good, but also very grim. This is a Christian based movie. There is a good ending in the sense of forgiveness, but I still found the movie quite sad. There is also a book.

The Blind Side

Wow, this movie rocks. Loved it! Excellent story about adoption. Based on a true story. I would watch this with teenagers and up.

Juno

Interesting movie. Shows that open adoption can work. I didn’t like the potential adoptive dad’s attitude throughout the movie, but again, this is a movie, not real life. Not my favorite adoption movie, but I know a lot of people seemed to like it.

Baby Boom

This is an older movie. Relative passes away and leaves the baby with the main character. She is going to place the baby for adoption but falls in love with her and now has to figure out how to parent her. This is a cute movie.

Man of Steel

Yeah, I know, Superman was adopted, but this movie focuses on it more. We get to see him struggle with his identity. Maybe it could spark some conversations in teenagers? And I really, really liked this movie too. 

You will find all kinds of made-for-TV-movies that take a black and white approach. The biological parents or adopted parents are evil and the other is good. There is no gray area. Nothing realistic. I cannot stand these movies. Sadly, this is usually how the media portrays adoption. I also have a hard time when a celebrity person dies and they list the children and always call out the ones that are adopted. Why do we need to know that? They are their children. They do not need an extra label. (Beauty of this being MY blog, I can state what I like and as random as I like) :-)

Books:

Instant Mom

I loved this book. It was full of humor, but it still was serious enough to show you that adoption is wonderful. This book was written by Nia Vardalos, screenwriter and actress from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. She writes about adopting her daughter from foster care and becoming an instant mom to a three-year-old.

Twenty Things Adopted Kids Wish Their Adopted Parents Knew

I think anyone adopting or if they are even thinking of adopting should read this book. The title speaks for itself.

Philomena: A Mother, Her Son, and a Fifty-Year Search

This is the most heartbreaking book I have read in a long time. (There is also a movie) I could barely get through the book, as it was so sad! This book shows you why we must have laws protecting everyone, and why we must have open adoption. (Extreme adult themes throughout this book, and I hear the movie)

Kids' Books:
 

I love you so

Wow, this is the cutest book from the illustrations to the beautiful written words. Whereas this is not an adoption book it will work for any child as it is that beautiful. This book will not disappoint.  

Tell Me Again About the Night I was Born

My daughters ask to read this over and over. Even though we did not fly on a plane to bring our daughters home, this book is a funny treasure. It nearly always brings up “Please tell me about the night you brought me home”. I wish I had gotten the hard copy since we have read it so much.

A Blessing From Above

This is such a cute little book. A Blessing From Above is a Christian book with some scripture. I think this book explains quite well what a blessing children are.

I am looking forward to reading your comments.