If you are not a member of this bank yet, you really should be. This bank shows true customer service at every turn. We have been with them several years, and I have never been unhappy with them. They helped us sign up for accounts for the kids. We are going to meet with them about setting up college accounts for the kids. They have online bill pay (I know I love this feature!). They also have a Debit Card Rewards Program. The more you use your debit card, the more rewards you earn. The reward points get turned in for gift certificates for places like Best Buy and Red Lobster (sorry, no foot of bed tv lifts or anything like that!).

According to their fee schedule, they will charge you if you need a copy of an old statement. I went into the bank on Thursday and explained my predicament. My old laptop blew up (I lost the hard drive) and I found all of 2007 statements (which I need to be able to do my taxes) except for Jan 2007. I just needed a print out of that. The wonderful personal banker I had worked her magic and got me my printout without having to charge me. I am grateful. This is just one great customer service experience I have had with them over the last several years.

It is a rarity to actually get good customer service, so when I see it, I like to let everyone know about it!

If you like having music in your house, Caillou Songs I Love (A Magical Book That Features 12 Great Melodies) is a book you should have. Not only is it a book , but it has a piano at the bottom of the pages that actually works. Each page has a story and and song on it. The song part of the page shows you the notes to play on the piano. Each note and key is numbered and color coded so children of any ages can figure it out. It has popular songs like London Bridge, Brother John, and Old MacDonald on there. The only song that it is missing is the one that goes “mamas gonna buy you and mocking bird, and if that mocking bird don’t sing, mammas gonna buy you a diamond ring (or is it wedding rings?)” I don’t remember the title of that song or the words for that matter but I think it should still have made the list. However, this book is still very enjoyable. My husband won’t admit it, but I think he likes playing on the piano just as much as the kids!

The Magic Locket is book Madison got for Christmas. The really cool thing with this book is that it comes with (no, not a raymond weil watches), but a locket. Madison really like that more than I think she liked the book. This is definitely a big girl book. The pages are paper, so they will rip. The story is that a little girl didn’t have much confidence and couldn’t do anything right. Her aunt gives her a locket and tells her it is magical. When the girl wears the locket, great things happen to her. What she doesn’t realize is that the magic is within her and not the locket. By the end of the book, she learns to believe in herself. This book has such a great story that all little girls need to read.