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

I decided to go online to check around and find out how easy it would be to file my son’s taxes for him, so he would not have to pay a huge fee to have someone else file for him. I discovered it is really quite easy to file our own taxes, as we are given step by step instructions, and this saves time as well as money. I also like the fact that at places like eSmart Tax, we can actually figure out our Federal taxes and file for free!

eSmart Tax, the premier online tax preparation service powered by Liberty Tax Service, is offering two ways American taxpayers can file their federal return online for free this year: the always-free Basic edition and the free Deluxe edition for persons with the last name of Johnson.

And get this. If your last name happens to be the second most common name in the United States, which just happens to be Johnson, then you and 2,121,489 other Johnsons file free!

Featuring eSmart Tax Deluxe Edition Which Includes:

~ Federal Tax Preparation and e-File – All the forms you need are right here, along with easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions that make free e-filing effortless.

~ e-File State Taxes – Only $5.95!

Seriously, even though my name is not Johnson, I would definately offer up my recommendation to those millions of Johnson’s out there, to just take a few moments and see what eSmart has to offer. It is totally free to check out, and just takes a few moments. I am not one to pass up a good opportunity, especially when it is so simple, and something which will save me precious time and the costly fees of hiring someone out to prepare my taxes. I always choose my best and greatest option.

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Allison Maslan, author of “Blast Off!”. All opinions are 100% mine.

One aspect of my personality that seems to attract others is my positive attitude. I am always going out of my way to help others. I have made it a personal goal of mine to look for ways to improve upon myself physically, emotionally, and spiritually. My path seems to lead me to just what I am looking for, right when I need it.

Someone like me still needs a bit of inspiration from time to time. When it comes to living our Dreams, nothing can stand in our way of achieving our goals, as long as we learn how to do this in a good way. Sometimes we despair about our Life situation, and just need a little boost to get us going again. I have a great desire to live my Dreams to the fullest, and let the pain of the past stay right where it is; in the past.

I have discovered a great coaching tool in the form of a book called Blast Off! written by leading Life and Career Coach, Allison Maslan. I am truly ready to take my Life to the next level and wholly realize my greatest desires and make my Dreams a reality. Allison reveals her failures, as well as her successes in this eye opening book, designed to help others gain the personal and professional happiness that she herself has achieved.

Hear what others have to say about Blast Off!

“How sweet is this! A beautifully crafted book, jam-packed full of bright wisdom, heartwarming stories, and brilliant ideas. Let it be your personal coach and you cannot go wrong. It will guide, advise, encourage, and even cheer you on at each and every step of your way, as you craft a vision, breathe life into your dreams, and make them come true.”
Miranda Castro, FSHom, CCH, homeopath and author, The Complete Homeopathy Handbook; Homeopathy for Pregnancy, Birth, and Your Baby’s First Years; and A Homeopathic Guide to Stress

“Allison Maslan is amazing. My dreams have come true after working closely with her program. Blast Off! is completely unique and led me to my road of success. Years of dreaming are now manifesting as a speaker and writer due solely to her program. Thank you, Allison!”
Jeanne Stryker, M.D.

These are just a couple of the wonderful comments people have on this amazing book. Are you ready to take your Life into your own hands and create a Path to make your Dreams a reality? Take a chance and focus on what it is you want out of Life. This is definately on the top of my ‘must have’ list, and what a great deal for only $24! Blast Off! has officially launched as of January 19th, 2010 and is available on Amazon, Borders, Barnes and Noble websites. It will also be available in all other major bookstores!

My daughter thinks it would be a great idea to pay particular attention to the education of my grandson, since we will be spending a lot of time with him while his mother goes to school. Mom wants to jumpstart her career options, so why not give the little guy a head start as well? Since I am totally into the home taught thing, my daughter and I can get pretty creative when it comes to teaching, as well as learning.

So I decided to find some great tools to help get us started. Of course, I am already a fan of LeapFrog, so it was an easy guess that I would find something quite simple to get us going. When I saw the LeapFrog Scribble and Write, I knew I was on the right track. Let me just post a couple of reviews to let people see how others have responded to this cool little gadget.

BoysMommy says…

This was an Amazon gift from the grandparents to my 4 year old. He LOVES this! It teaches your child the proper way to make their letters. (My 8 year old needs one LOL!)He loves tracing the dots and sliding the eraser. It cheers the kids on after they push the paw print. He will sneak to play with it when he is suppose to be sleeping. It is currently at show and tell at his pre-k, he loves it that much. One week of use and he is going all over the house writing the first letter of his name. He has shown off his letter writing skills at the Drs. office. He now writes his letters better than his big brother in 3rd grade!

Daddy B Me writes…

My 3 year old is starting to write and draw and this is really helping with her learning to write her ABC’s and shapes. She really loves the dog Scout and the cute audio. The size of it is right on the money and is easy to take along in the car. Every letter brings out some cute responses too.

Mother of 2 Boys tells us…

My 3 1/2 year old son got this scribble and write for Christmas. He loves following the dots to draw, does great with the letters, still a little slow with the picture part but is so proud when he writes the letter properly. And the best thing of all, he enjoys using it (and he’s learning without even knowing!!)

Well then, I am definately of a mind that this is a great gift, as well as a sweet little learning toy. For the price, it is worth checking out… what a wonderful addition to our travel toys to keep those little ones occupied on the road as well!

I am helping to spread the word on a subject very dear to my heart. Wild horses. Well, horses in general, yet the plight of these wild ones is quite dire, and needs our attention now. America’s wild horses are being rounded up, in a very cruel fashion, and many of them slaughtered. Soon there will be no wild mustang’s in America, and that is a terrible shame. Such a crime should never be inflicted on these horses. They have served humankind well throughout time, and deserve a much greater fate. Please view the following video, and join myself, along with Viggo Mortensen, Sheryl Crow, among many others, advocating for the rights of these beautiful and noble creatures to run free…

For more vital information on how you can help, please visit –> The American Wild Horse today. There is no time for delay, as this is happening now, and horses are dying.

Without our help, these beautiful, wild, and noble creatures will no longer exist. They have been our friends and helpers since ancient times… is this really how we will repay these great hearts that have helped us so much? I am not willing to accept this. We need to take action, sign the petitions, and make some phone calls.. let our voices be heard in this outrage!

Some numbers to call – 1) Call President Obama (202-456-1111) and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar (202-208-3100)

Tis the Season for gift giving in a big way once again. Whilst giving gift in our very large family encompasses the entire year, many in our family do celebrate Christmas. Personally, I could just as well skip the gift giving part, as the majority of my family just had birthdays!! Alas, I to will pick up the spirit of the Season and spread some joy, in spite of this.

Searching around for new ideas for gifts is fun, and it also gives me a chance to add to my own wish list as well. At the top of my list of course is the Kindle Wireless Reading Device (6″ Display, Global Wireless, Latest Generation) which can be found at Amazon. This device simply has to be the coolest gift for an avid reader such as myself!

Let me give just a few examples of why I think this a virtually awesome gift for book lovers (pick me! pick me!). First of all the Kindle is 3G wireless, which lets you download books right from your Kindle; no annual contracts, no monthly fees, and no hunting for Wi-Fi hotspots. Just imagine how wonderful to be able to pull out my kindle wherever it pleases me! Oh yeah, that’s what I’m talking about.

This sweet little device reads like real paper, without glare, even in bright sunlight. Plus we can read for up to 1 week on a single charge with wireless on, a significant improvement from the previous battery life of just 4 days. Holds up to 1,500 books… not that I really need that many, but heck let’s just build a virtual library, shall we?

The Kindle Store has more than 360,000 books available, including 101 of 112 New York Times® Best Sellers, plus top newspapers, magazines, and blogs. So there are little or no worries that avid readers will find what they are looking for. Whether you prefer biographies, classics, investment guides, thrillers, or sci-fi, thousands of your favorite books are available. The ultimate vision for the Kindle Wireless Reading Deviceis to have every book ever printed, in any language, all available in under 60 seconds. Now that is a lofty goal!

I actually discovered The Kindle last spring and mentioned it in another post, which gives more details about the features, and of course more of my own thoughts. All in all, I believe this to be a Virtually cool gift!

Now here is a place that will get those virtual exploration vibes moving into full gear! Kids (and big people too!) need some active stimulation to get them interested in finding out about their world. There are so many diverse cultures and exciting places to explore, and it just takes a glimpse of the home page at National Geographic Kids to spark some real live interest in learning more.

There are lots of fun games and activities geared towards teaching about interesting things around the planet. As a parent I am well aware of how it sometimes takes a lot to get our kid’s attention when it comes to learning. If we keep it fun, while stimulating active imaginations, we can pretty much count on retaining some pretty important facts about life on this Earth. I love to teach through interacting activities online and off, so I get excited when I find new places to explore with my daughter.

So if you have kids, or just wish to play around a bit whilst discovering new places and facts, well then you may wish to take a few moments to visit Kid’s National Geographic and beef up your trivia knowledge of the world around you.

It really does make sense to see the FBI in action throughout the virtual realms of online social media. What better way to get the word out on the most wanted than through Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, just to name a few. These social medias present a powerful force when it comes to hearing about breaking news as it happens (Twitterers know all about this one), and getting the word out when danger rears it’s ugly head.

“To reach out to the public, we need to be where people are—and we know tens of millions of people spend their time in social media sites,” says John Miller, head of FBI Public Affairs. “Adding our fugitives, missing kids, threat and scam warnings, and other information into these sites is an extension of what we’ve done for decades—enlisting the help and support of concerned citizens around the globe to keep communities safer.”

Here are a few places in which we can follow the presence of the FBI in the Social Media’s…

• Facebook, where you can follow our news, check out our photos and videos, and become a “fan” of the FBI;
• YouTube, where you can watch our videos and connect back to our main website for job postings and other content; and
• Twitter, where you can receive our tweets on breaking news and other useful information.

The FBI is exploring a presence on SecondLife. Jonathan Cox—along with graphic artist Scott Carmine—designed the FBI’s first virtual billboards for sites like Second Life and sees them as the wave of the future. “Unlike 10 years ago, almost everyone today has had an experience connecting online through virtual media, whether through a gaming console or popular sites like Second Life,” Cox said. “The ease at which information can be transferred, ideas can be exposed, and technology can be shared in virtual worlds will hopefully lead to the arrest of a fugitive or the location of a missing child in the near future.”

You can learn more by visiting The FBI in the Virtual Realms of Social Media to get the whole scoop and more news. Modern technology sure does add a whole new realm of possibilities when it comes to connecting with the people around the world.

I have always enjoyed my journey of keeping my body fit and healthy. I would much rather have fun while getting or staying in shape, so when I discovered the Wii Fit, I was totally overjoyed at the prospect of trying this out! What an amazing concept in technology which allows us to play a video game that actually works more than our hands and our brains!! Of course, this is not the only game that gets our blood pumping, yet it is one game in which adds to my fitness arsenal while satisfying my competitive nature and keeping score! Talk about setting goals with style.

Wii Fit Features

* Wii Fit comes with the Wii Balance Board and requires a Wii console to play. Wii console sold separately.

* Wii Fit combines fitness with fun and is designed for everyone, young and old. Wii Fit players work towards personal fitness goals and they block soccer balls, swivel hips to power hoop twirls, and go big on ski jumps to get themselves there.

* Check your daily progress, set goals, check your Wii Fit Age, and even enter exercise time you’ve done outside of Wii Fit.

* Wii Fit Age is measured by factoring the user’s BMI reading, testing the user’s center of gravity and conducting quick balance tests.

* Training is at the core of Wii Fit. You can spend as much (or as little) time as you want trying out all of the 40+ activities Wii Fit offers.

The Wii Fit Balance Board

The primary tenet of Wii Fit is balance. Your center of balance, the point between your left and right sides when you stand upright, has a lot to do with your health. Those without an even center of balance will be unnaturally compensating for this imbalance, which causes their posture to become misaligned, increasing the possibility of putting unnecessary strain on their bodies. This is where the Wii Balance Board comes in.

Similar in appearance to a step aerobics board, the Wii Balance Board is much, much more. Easily capable of supporting weights up to a maximum of 300 pounds, it is sturdy and precise, able to measure weight and register pressure accurately when placed on a variety of flat surfaces. This advanced level of sensitivity allows for both the wide range of activities found in the Wii Fit software as well as the board’s amazing ability recognize individual players by their weight alone.

Final Thoughts

Maybe, just maybe, this game would hold my interest long enough to challenge my already very shapely body. And perhaps I might even learn a thing or two, which is always a plus in any fitness program we dedicate ourselves to.

Strength, Yoga, Aerobics, and Balance are all great aspects of personal training, and since I already practice Qigong on a daily basis, this just might possibly hold my attention long enough to make me stronger, faster, and so much more beautiful from the inside out!

Just what is a Kindle? Well, it is the latest in electronic technology for book lovers like me! We can actually upload our favourite books, magazines, newspapers, blogs, and more, into a super light gadget designed to carry loads of information right at our fingertips. Our personal libraries just got lighter, brighter, and totally loaded with adventure if that is what floats your boat! Personally, I love to escape this percieved reality upon occasion, and what better way than to carry such an amazing device that can fit right into my purse or backpack! And just knowing that there is a huge selection of uploadable books available make this little reader an even sweeter deal.

Just imagine the time and space saver this nifty little device truly is. Not only can we eliminate the clutter, we can also have our favourite read handy for those moments we need to fill the time waiting at appointments, or just when we need to take a break.

Holds Over 1,500 Books

The ultimate travel companion, Kindle weighs 10.2 ounces and holds more than 1,500 books. No longer pick and choose which books fit in your carry-on. Now you can always have your entire library with you.

Automatic Library Backup: Download Your Books Anytime for Free

A copy of every book you purchased is backed up online at Amazon.com in case you ever need to download it again. You can wirelessly re-download books for free anytime. This allows you to make room for new titles on your Kindle, knowing that Amazon is storing your personal library. We even back up your last page read and annotations, so you’ll never lose those, either. Think of it as a bookshelf in your attic–even though you don’t see it, you know your books are there.

Overview of New Features of Kindle 2

Slim: Just over 1/3 of an inch, as thin as most magazines

Lightweight: At 10.2 ounces, lighter than a typical paperback

Wireless: 3G wireless lets you download books right from your Kindle, anytime, anywhere; no monthly fees, service plans, or hunting for Wi-Fi hotspots

Books in Under 60 Seconds: Get books delivered in less than 60 seconds; no PC required

Improved Display: Reads like real paper; now boasts 16 shades of gray for clear text and even crisper images

Longer Battery Life: 25% longer battery life; read for days without recharging

More Storage: Take your library with you; holds over 1,500 books

Faster Page Turns: 20% faster page turns

Read-to-Me: With the new text-to-speech feature, Kindle can read every newspaper, magazine, blog, and book out loud to you, unless the book is disabled by the rights holder

Large Selection: Over 260,000 books plus U.S. and international newspapers, magazines, and blogs available

Low Book Prices: New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise

For more Information and Detailed Features

I am really suprised I have not already gotten one of these totally cool Kindles. I am placing this item on the very top of my wish list, and sending out some pretty strong hints for Mother’s Day! If you love to read even half as much as I do, perhaps you would like to visit this link –> Kindle 2: Amazon’s New Wireless Reading Device (Latest Generation) to view the amazing features this futuristic little gadget has to offer. I am pretty certain you will be just as impressed as I am! If you already have experience with this sweet little reader, please feel free to share your comments.