Fairytale Giveaway Hop - The Other Slipper

This hop is hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and features YA Books with a fairy tale theme, or fairy tale retellings. And so I present to you, The Other Slipper by Kenechi Udogu. One random winner will receive an ebook copy by answering the question at the end of the post.

AND THE WINNER IS TecknicoleurGrl

The Other Slipper is a twist on the Cinderella story, it is not really a retelling, rather it weaves another story thread and new characters into the fairy tale. Jo is a teenager who is present at the dinner where Cinderella meets the prince. Things take a magical spin when Jo stumbles onto Cinderella's glass slipper and has to return it, leading to a journey of adventure and self discovery. The author tells it better...

How I almost fell for a GTBank Email Scam

If anyone had asked me about my vulnerability to bank email scams two weeks ago when I received and trashed a GTBank Scam Alert email, I would have scored it zero. When it comes to phishing scams where you are supposed to go somewhere and fill in your details, I considered myself sophisticated and above all that. I used to think, I've been doing this internet thing for ten years now, they can't get me.

Well last weekend, they almost did. I had recently opened a GTBank Non-Resident account which I could use from here through internet banking and had little complaints. Funny enough, I had mentioned to Atala that I felt they were too security conscious. Logging into my account online was like going down to the bank vault, there were so many locks and bolts, pincodes, passwords, secret questions, tokens, etc...it took almost 5mins and compared to the one-minute transaction on my account here, I was chaffing.

Dear Myne - It is Difficult to have Sex with my Husband!

Hi Myne, I will really appreciate your help and that of your readers who I believe are very mature and experienced, and they are respectable too. The last is the reason I have the boldness to share this very sensitive issue with them, yes, please...I want this to be published on your blog in addition to your response too. I am at a crossroads and I am about to lose my mind.

I've been married for going a year now and yet I have not been able to have full relations with my husband. And before anyone goes off on the wrong bend, it is not a fault of my husband... he is willing, able and ready. Can I say the fault is mine? I don't know. I am in my twenties and I was a virgin when I got married to this guy that I really love...I am a Christian and had stuck to no sex (or anything) before marriage as I believed that saving myself for marriage was the better way.

Minku Designs Marks Anniversary with Giveaway

Minku is a leather goods company started last year by Nigerian designer Kunmi Otitoju. They are based in Barcelona, Spain, and with a branch in Lagos Nigeria. They design and hand-make leather goods that inject fun and uniqueness into everyday life. For more information about products and updates on their new collections, please visit their website.

To celebrate their first Anniversary, Minku Leather Goods is sharing this opportunity for readers to win the amazing product in the picture above from the new Minku collection which will be showcased on their website from April 25. Click to read full details...

Destination Weddings - Stephanie and Linus Idahosa

Some pictures just make you go awww. Stephanie Okereke got married yesterday in Paris and her wedding pictures are now everywhere on the interwebs. The photos I think are really beautiful, with what is most important, a happy, smiling couple.

The guests are also looking great, Bellanaija is reporting that there were about 400 of them, which included several Nollywood actors. I was reading somewhere whether small weddings were possible in Nigeria, where guest lists usually start from 200 and run up to thousands, or if one had to have a destination wedding in order to minimize the number of guests.

But I wonder about destination weddings, don't they come with their own palava and expenses - travel, lodging, etc? I am thinking that if you keep the invitations low-key, and stay away from extended family and social groups, you might just work out a small wedding in Nigeria.

Fighting Chronic Diseases in Nigeria - Ebele Mogo

Ebele Mogo is a reader of this blog who lives and works in Alberta, Canada. She also loves writing and two of her poems have been published in Sentinel Nigeria. Ebele is also the founding President of Engage Africa Foundation, a non-profit focused in health development.

Ebele is the only Nigerian contestant applying for a grant called Canada's Rising Stars, a program aimed at rewarding the creativity and skills of promising Canadian innovators' efforts in solving chronic health crisis in 3rd world countries.in which she is . The grant, if she wins, will financially support her to raise awareness of chronic diseases and advocate for health conscious policies in Nigeria and the rest of Sub-saharan Africa.

Weekend Pictures - The Space Needle Seattle Center

I can still remember the first time I visited the Space Needle here in Seattle. It was first summer here in 2009 after arriving during a dreary and drizzly spring and I was so ready for some sunshine. And where best than at the iconic Space Needle that I had seen in movies like Sleepless in Seattle, among others.

Since then, I have visited the Needle several times, including eating at the restaurant, going out to the observatory, watching movies on the lawn, and using the cultural and recreational facilities around the center. And to think the Space Needle and some of those facilities are 50years old.

Moving in: Are You Ready to Live with your Man?

Yesterday, we were discussing co-habitation, and today I have a guest post on the same topic. Erica St. Claire looks at some ways to help you decide if you're ready for the big move.

So you’ve been dating for a while and the idea of moving in with your boyfriend has been presented. This can be very exciting as moving in together allows an the opportunity for the two of you to grow closer by sharing a key, a bed and the same roof.

But because moving in together also involves sharing more serious things like rent, bills, groceries, and a slew of other obligations, if done without proper consideration, moving in with your significant other can result in broken leases and even broken hearts. So to make sure that your relationship doesn’t go straight to hell in a U-Haul, be sure to ask yourself the following questions before committing to packing your bags and picking out paint colors with your new roomie:

Showers of Books Giveaway Hop International

This hop is hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and One A Day Y.A. April Showers, they say, bring May flowers and so I will be featuring GoneReading, who are dedicated to providing showers of books to libraries and reading-related charities around the world.

GoneReading markets a unique collection of gifts for readers, and donates 100% of after-tax profits to charities like ReadGlobal in Nepal and and Ethiopia Reads. In the United States, GoneReading is currently piloting a fundraising program to raise money for public libraries. If you represent a public library in the U.S., you can read more about their library fundraiser opportunity. Please also check out their store for several amazing products.

Cohabitation, an alternative to Marriage?

When I told Atala about the recent news about Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, he asked; "I thought they were married?" No, they aren't, and even with this engagement, marriage is not assured. It's interesting that it is their children who are very keen for their parents to get married, probably from what they see around them, from friends, classmates and other sources.

Now Atala is not alone in thinking Pitt-Jolie are married, what with them having been together for seven years and having six children, both by birth and by adoption. At the same time, the couple are not the only people who fore-go legal marriage and go for co-habitation.