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AMERICAN GIRL’S 2019 GIRL OF THE YEAR™ BLAIRE HAS THE RECIPE

December 31, 2018 By denise 24 Comments

Disclosure: This is sponsored post by America Girl. As a American Girl Ambassador. All opinions are my own.

Tonight, millions of girls everywhere are counting down to welcome the New Year and American Girl’s newest Girl of the Year™, Blaire Wilson™! Launching on January 1, Blaire—a young chef-in-training who loves bringing people together—joins American Girl’s family of characters and timeless stories designed to help girls think about their own character and who they want to be. A natural people person, Blaire excels at gathering people around the dinner table but needs help finding balance between the digital world and the real world—like many people today. Through Blaire, girls will learn the importance of staying connected to the people they care about and that this means more than clicking and swiping—it means truly being there.

“We’re proud to introduce fans to our 2019 Girl of the Year, Blaire Wilson—an everyday girl who thrives on using her many talents to make meaningful connections with others,” says Julia Prohaska, Vice President of Marketing for American Girl. “Building and maintaining supportive relationships with family and friends is central to Blaire’s story—a message we think is important to champion among girls today. In an age where families are often striving for quality time together, we hope Blaire inspires everyone to make a New Year’s resolution to connect more regularly with the important people in their lives and make their time together this year really count.”

Blaire’s story unfolds in a chapter book series written by Jennifer Castle and published by Scholastic. In the two books, available now, Blaire loves to put her cooking and decorating talents to good use on her family’s sustainable farm and bed-and-breakfast in upstate New York. When the opportunity to plan the farm’s first wedding arises, Blaire jumps in with gusto. However, between overextending herself to create the perfect farm-fancy event and a newly diagnosed food sensitivity that makes her self-conscious, Blaire finds herself more engaged on her devices than at real-life gatherings with others. Ultimately, through the help of her family and friends, Blaire finds a healthy balance and learns the value of being fully present at every occasion.

Blaire comes to life for girls via a beautiful 18-inch doll, featuring bright green eyes and curly red hair. Blaire’s world features an array of outfits, accessories, and products that reflect her life on Pleasant View Farm, including a sweet lamb and piglet, festive party decor, and Blaire’s Family Farm Restaurant, with everything needed to play out a show stopping farm-to-table celebration.

Fans can learn more about Blaire at the following 2019 events and activities:

  • Blaire’s New Year’s Day Events: On January 1, American Girl stores nationwide are hosting Blaire’s Launch Event, where girls can celebrate with a fun decorating demonstration, a hand-lettering craft, a delicious sweet treat, and a free take-home Blaire doll item. Guests can also enter for a chance to win a Blaire doll and book. For more details, visit americangirl.com/stores.
  • Blaire Online Play: Girls can visit http://play.americangirl.com/play/girl-of-the-year/blaire for book excerpts, games and activities, and Blaire’s Life at Pleasant View Farm Vlog posts from her family’s sustainable farm, featuring delicious recipes, gardening tips, cooking and craft videos, and more.
  • Blaire’s Family Dinner Series: To promote mealtime togetherness, families are invited to attend a Blaire-inspired dinner series at select American Girl retail restaurants across the country in 2019. Parents can visit americangirl.com/stores to learn more or make a reservation.

The Blaire collection is available on January 1, 2019, at americangirl.com; at all American Girl retail locations nationwide; and at American Girl specialty boutiques at select Indigo™ and Chapters™ locations in Canada and online at Indigo.ca. The Blaire books can also be purchased through retail and online booksellers.

 

Great News American Girl is going to Gift One of My Readers Doll:

1. Follow me on twitter at https://twitter.com/Nico2317

2. Visit my Facebook page and leave a comment https://www.facebook.com/savingswithdenise

3. Follow me on Instagram https://instagram.com/denisenico23/ and leave a comment

4. Follow me on Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/nico2317/ and leave a comment

5. Follow me on Google Plus https://plus.google.com/u/0/+DeniseSeegobin and leave a comment

You must leave a separate comment in the comments fields for each entry that you make to be entered. This contest will run until January 31, 2019.

 

 

Filed Under: Events, Reviews, Things of Interest Tagged With: 2019 American Girl Doll, American Girl, Blaire Wilson

Visa Teams Up with the NFL to Tackle Financial Literacy with New Video Game- #FinancialFootball

October 21, 2018 By denise Leave a Comment

Disclosure: This is not a compensated or sponsored post. I was invited to the event. All opinions expressed here are my own.

 

New York Giants’ Saquon Barkley and Eli Manning help Visa launch its new and improved Financial Football video game at MetLife Stadium on Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2018, in East Rutherford, N.J. (Adam Hunger/AP Images for VISA)

 

Everyone who knows me knows how much I love football, so this was a great time seeing these two NFL players. Also, they were talking about a topic that’s near and dear to my heart Financial Literacy.  Throughout my career, I have stressed Financial Literacy to many young individuals, so I am excited to see the NFL take up the baton and developing this video game.  It has also my belief that if we teach young individuals about money management they will be able to balance their checkbooks and make investments when they get older.

Financial Football video game for the 2018 – 2019 NFL season at an event in New Jersey with New York Giants stars, Eli Manning and Saquon Barkley. The free video game lets fans ages 11 and older suit up as a player from their favorite NFL team and play a virtual game of football designed to help students learn to make smart money-management decisions.

Research shows one-in-five teenage students in the U.S. lacks basic financial skillsi. Forty percent of adults said that if faced with a $400 unexpected expense, they would either not be able to pay it or would do so by selling something or borrowing moneyii. As new payment methods such as mobile payments, contactless cards and wearables become more prevalent, it underscores the need for financial literacy starting at an early age and continuing into adulthood.

“Financial Football provides young people in our communities with the tools and understanding of sound money management, helping prepare them for a lifetime of smart financial decisions,” said Marianne Mwaniki, SVP and Head of Social Impact at Visa. “As the world’s leader in digital payments, we are proud to partner with the NFL to combine the excitement of football and financial literacy to bring otherwise difficult money matters to life for students.”

Financial Football features improved 3D graphics and enhanced game play. It challenges players to answer multiple-choice and true or false questions to advance down the field in order to score a touchdown. New features include:

  • Single player and head-to-head games
  • Three different levels of difficulty: Rookie (ages 11-14), Pro (ages 14-18) and Hall of Fame (ages 18+)
  • Expanded categories include: Budgeting, Saving, Financial Institutions, Credit, Debt, Identity Theft, Life Events
  • The ability to play both offense and defense. Players can select from over 40 offensive plays, as well as the ability to stop their opponents from advancing by answering a defensive question correctly.

The latest version of Financial Football, makes financial education accessible to everyone, no matter how or where they choose to play. The game is available through iOS and Android apps and online. Visa has joined with 49 state governments and the District of Columbia to distribute copies of the game to middle and high schools in those regions. Visa’s Financial Football can now be played online at financialfootball.com or downloaded on any computer or mobile device as a free app.

At MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, Giants stars, Eli Manning and Saquon Barkley hosted more than 100 high school students for the official launch of the new Financial Football video game. The two players coached the head-to-head game competition and led students through skills and drills activities focused on financial education categories.

“Visa’s Financial Football is a fun way for kids and adults to learn about financial literacy and responsibility,” said Eli Manning, the Giants’ veteran quarterback. “Football fans of any age can participate and tackle the important life skill of money management. It’s important we equip our children with that knowledge.”

Manning says he strongly believes that the younger the kids are when you introduce them to Financial Literacy, the less likely they will make money management mistakes when they get older.  It was great to see Manning a veteran player talking about this, but also being there with rookie Barkley who is learning to balance his financial decisions and being in the NFL was very exciting. You could tell that these two enjoyed their time with the kids. It is an important topic and we need more education around this. I was so happy that I passed the skills test.  You could see that the kids respected these players and I hope they will learn from them.

The game, which has been played more than 10 million times is available in English and Spanish. To put your financial literacy skills to the test, download Financial Football at: https://financialfootball.com/downloads.

The game, available in both English and Spanish, lets students play football as one of their favorite NFL players. To move the ball down the field, or to block the other team from doing so, kids must correctly answer a financial literacy multiple choice question.

Kids can choose to play one of three levels of difficulty: Rookie (ages 11 to 14), Pro (ages 14 to 18), and Hall of Fame (ages 18+).

Visa also partnered with 49 state governments and the District of Columbia to distribute copies of the game to middle and high schools.

The game, designed for kids ages 11 and up, is available now for iOS, for Androids, and online.

Filed Under: Things of Interest Tagged With: #FinancialFootball, #FinLit, Eli Manning, Financil Literacy, NFL, Saquon Barkley, Visa

Sergio Delavicci Talks About Prison Reform

October 16, 2018 By denise Leave a Comment

With seemingly everyone accepting there is a crisis in our prison system that requires urgent attention, there is a recurring use of the term ‘rehabilitation’. Sadly there is no similar acceptance of a crisis in the ‘reformed’ probation service which has always had ‘rehabilitation’ as a core aim.

Prison reform is an issue that is central to my studies in law. It is also a campaign that Sergio Delavicci has taken on. Here is what he had to say on the issue.

Why are you passionate about speaking to prisoners?

I’m so passionate about speaking to prisoners because I believe I can be a positive influence in their life. Not too long ago I was facing similar consequences and I was able to turn my life around.

With you being a celebrity with a major role in Creed 2, what inspired you to want to speak to prisoners?

Even though I don’t necessarily consider myself an average person, I don’t consider myself a celebrity as well. I rather be known as someone who made something from nothing and was able to make a difference in the lives of other people. What inspired me to speak to prisoners is the fact that I can relate, have the voice and the ability to impact them in a positive way.

For those who are facing prison time what advice would you share with them?

For those who are facing prison time, the advice I would give them is don’t give up. There’s a reason why they’re in the situation they are in but there is also a lesson to be learned from it. If you’re truly innocent then study the law and hire a good lawyer if possible. There is a high percentage of people who are wrongfully convicted in this country.

What kind of change/reform would you like to see happen in the United States prison system?

The change I would like to see happen in the United States prison system is better and fair treatment.

Many of those who are currently incarcerated look up to you as a role model, what message would you like to share with them?

The message I would like to share with those who are currently incarcerated and look up to me is to manage your time wisely until you’re released. Don’t allow any negative thoughts to consume you and stay away from negativity and conflicts behind the wall. Keep yourself busy and occupied at all times (read books, write what’s on your mind, work out, get a job, speak to someone who’s about making a positive change in their life, learn to like yourself) If you’re facing life, continue praying. Have God in your life at all times.

How has speaking at prisons impacted or changed your life?

Speaking at prisons has definitely impacted my life. It has brought me closer to the reality of life and allowed me to better understand that anything can happen to anyone.

When it comes to youth offenders/prisoners what advice would you share with them?

When it comes to young offenders, I would advise them to leave any negativity behind while they still can. The kind of choices they make today can change their entire life for the good or bad.

Filed Under: Things of Interest Tagged With: @gio_delavicci, Prison Reform

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Hi, I'm Denise. I currently live in the beautiful Southern State of Louisiana, but I'm a native New Yorker. On my blog, Savings with Denise, I help families save money on the things they use everyday. Read more →

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