National Pancake Day! 2/28/2013

Today was National Pancake Day!! I made the day fun for my little man, starting with making Pancakes and homemade syrup together! We made some fun little pancake characters as you see below :)

                                                    Our Pancake Day table set :)
Later I had my son do a ingredients paper, an idea I got from Kitchen Counter Chronicles, where they learn on the ingredients to make pancakes and where they come from.


He got to play Pancake Frisbee Toss (which I don't have a picture of but i made "pancake frisbees" from cardboard) and Sew some fun felt pancakes too! (My pancake is on the left, his, he sewn all by himself is on the right) He decided they needed butter so we sewed yellow pom poms on... Yes they look a little... interesting... haha

 We had a nice Pancake day and filled our belly with the yummy pancakes :) Hope everyone else had a terrific National Pancake Day and ate a pancake or two-or three or four! ;)

Designer Ties by PUCCINI

striped-tie-amber-yellow-white

Over at Bows N' Ties, they sell PUCCINI Tie's that just came out with a new Repp-Stripe Collection that is available in 8 different styles! Each tie has two colors paired into a contemporary stripe design, adding a little more *pop* to a man's wardrobe! These ties are made using a unique microfiber fabric that feels identical to silk but is more wrinkle and stain resistant. Great for any fancy occasion!
striped-tie-deep-burgundy-grey

striped-tie-bright-red-whitestriped-tie-aubergine-pinkstriped-tie-yellow-navystriped-tie-brigh-red-navystriped-tie-peacock-white


 I received the classic silver and white striped tie to review, which I'm happy about because it looks great with my hubby's skin color! He can wear it well with just about any color of solid button shirt but it looks especially nice on his solid darker grey or black shirt. The tie is great for a fancy occasion and also pairs well with a casual jacket for a more casual look, like below.
striped-tie-silver-white

The tie itself seems to be made really good. The tag on the inside says it's 100% Microfiber and made by hand. The fabric is really soft and feels durable. It's made at a length of 58 inches and a width of 3.5 inches. PUCCINI Ties seem to be a great value for the price of only $9.90! I would definitely purchase these if my hubby wore ties more often :) I love the other colors that Bows N' Ties sell. From light blues to oranges and everything in between! They also sell bowties, handkerchiefs, cuff links, 
scarves, ascots, and tie bars, All at a good price!

You can purchase PUCCINI Ties online at http://www.bows-n-ties.com/

Be sure to check them out on Facebook and Twitter!

A SPECIAL READER GETS TO WIN A PUCCINI TIE!! FOLLOW THE RAFFLECOPTER BELOW! GOOD LUCK! :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

F.S.T.G. MultiGrain Tortilla Chips Review

I received a sample bag of Food Should Taste Good: MultiGrain Tortilla Chips and I have to say, I really enjoyed these chips! They have a plain taste with just a hint of salt, but the more I ate them the more I liked them! Especially the chips that have a bit of a smoked/burnt flavor. So good!

These chips are made all natural with Flax, Sunflower, Sesame Seeds, Quinoa, Soy and Brown Rice. They are also Gluten Free! As well as vegan certified, low sodium, no msg, artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. No trans Fat, cholesterol free and a great source of fiber! These are some healthy chips that taste amazing.

They also have so many other great flavors of chips and crackers, I would love to try them all!

Campbell's Slow Kettle Soups + Socks Review

Campbell's Slow Kettle Soups are crafted by chefs using high quality ingredients and combine them in artistic ways, giving a more indulgent taste experience. Slow Kettle Soups come in seven different flavors:
  • Braised Beef Stew with Baby Bella Mushrooms
  • Roasted Potatoes & Burgundy Wine
  • Kickin’ Crab & Sweet Corn Chowder with Flame Roasted Onions & Cayenne Pepper
  • Portobello Mushroom & Madeira Bisque with Shallots, Thyme & Sage
  • Roasted Chicken & Chardonnay with Fire-Roasted Tomatoes, Aged Parmesan & Pasta
  • Southwest-Style Chicken Chili with Black Beans & Sweet Corn
  • Tomato & Sweet Basil Bisque with Fresh Cream & Ground Red Pepper
  • Tuscan-Style Chicken & White Bean with Asiago Cheese, Thyme & Rosemary
The flavor I received from Smiley360 to review is the:  
Roasted Chicken & Chardonnay with Fire-Roasted Tomatoes, Aged Parmesan & Pasta

The soup is filled with chicken pieces, tomatoes, pasta balls, carrots and more. I found this soup to be surprisingly pretty good. A lot of soups that contain specific ingredients tend to have a weird flavor but this one was what you would imagine in an Italian restaurant. The soup container made a good amount, I would say it's great for two, as a starter to your meal. The directions say it is best to stove cook, which is what I did and it cooked just fine. My favorite ingredients in this soup were the carrots and the chicken. Next on my list, I'd like to try the Southwest-Style Chicken Chili with Black Beans & Sweet Corn Slow Kettle soup. I also received some funny "sports socks" to go with my warm soup! These are knee high green and yellow socks that match the Oregon Ducks!





You can get a $1.00 off coupon HERE if you would like to purchase your own Campbell's Slow Kettle Soups! Enjoy!
 
This post is made possible by Smiley360 in providing me the above items, in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

4 Ingredient Cookies + Recipe

I found this awesome recipe from Just Married With Coupons on how to make only 4 ingredient cookies (Or 3 if you don't add in chocolate chips/sprinkles ;) ! Now we all know I have a major sweet tooth so super easy dessert recipes are always my go to. I split the recipe in half so all I did was crack 1 egg into a bowl, mix it up with a whisk, then added in a 1/2 cup of granulated sugar-whisked it all in with the egg, then added in about 1/2 cup of peanut butter and mixed well. The batter came out sorta liquidy so you just scoop it out with a spoon and place onto a greased cookie sheet. You can add chocolate chips if you like, I didn't have any so I just sprinkled some chocolate sprinkles on the top of the cookie dollops and baked at 350 degrees for about 11 minutes. They smell delicious and taste even better! They have a chewy texture with a crunchy bottom, and by halving the recipe, it made 13 cookies total.


Honey Bunches of Oats Tropical Blends Cereal

Have you ever tried Honey Bunches of Oats cereal?  I usually enjoy the Honey Roasted flavor but they just came out with a new Tropical Blends flavor that I received as a Purex Insider, to taste and review!

The cereal sounds amazing. A Tropical blend of crispy mango flakes, real coconut shavings, and coconut flavored granola clusters! Sounds like a delicious mix! Piece that together with the cereal containing 9 essential vitamins and minerals needed, including 60% of our daily iron. It's much healthier for you too! Made with 10g of whole grain, only 120 calories with 6g of sugar per serving, 4 wholesome grains, 0g of Trans Fat, making it heart healthy and much more! Everything sounds so great... now on to the taste!!


The Tropical blends smell of just that, the tropics! I wouldn't expect anything else. The taste is explosive with mango flavors, so if you're a fan of mango, this cereal is definitely for you! The granola clusters give each bite a nice crunch, but nothing to hard to chew. I'm not a huge fan of mango so I still prefer the honey roasted flavor over the tropical, but it still has a delicious flavor I enjoy too  :)

If you would like to try Honey Bunches of Oats cereal in the new Tropical Blends flavor, follow the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win your very own box or cereal!!There will be 2 winners!

Purex teamed up with Honey Bunches of Oats and Outrigger Hotels and Resorts to launch a prize giveaway where one lucky winner will be sent on a tropical paradise vacation to Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach! Enter to win a chance to spend your days relaxing underneath the warm, Hawaiian sun and your nights exploring Waikiki’s never-ending nightlife. To enter that sweepstakes, go HERE.

a Rafflecopter giveaway



This post is made possible by Purex, for allowing me to be an Insider and providing me with the supplies to test and review. 

The Taste on ABC

The Taste is a new foodie show that was released on January 22nd, 2013, starring culinary masters: Anthony Bourdain, Ludo Lefebvre, Nigella Lawson & Brian Malarkey! It's all about the taste of food, hence the title name ;) "Each culinary master coaches a team of 4 cooks, consisting of professional chefs and home cooks whom they will hand pick based on a blind taste challenge. Throughout the season, their mentors will prepare them for challenges in creating dishes that will ultimately be judged by the superstar chefs in blind taste tests. One cook will be left standing to take home The Taste trophy along with a new Ford C-Max and $100,000!"

I just learned about The Taste through Influenster, I have not watched it myself yet, but viewed  a clip on their most recent episode (which you can view HERE) and it looks good!  The Taste will be showing on ABC tonight! And every Tuesdays at 8/7c! 

Be sure to check them out on Facebook and Twitter as well!

Dry Idea Advanced Dry Deodorant

Dry Idea AdvancedDry in the Fresh scent, is a hypoallergenic antiperspirant and deodorant. It is made with Vitamin E, formulated to keep you feeling clean and fresh, as well as Pulse Activated Wetness protection that guarantees to "Never Let Them See You Sweat" and will keep the odor away for 72 hours!
I love the smell of Dry Idea's Fresh Deodorant. It smells just as it is, fresh and clean. I applied mine in the morning and about 10hours later, I noticed my armpits started to get sticky, much like I wasn't wearing any deodorant. I could still smell the DryIdea Deodorant but it was a very faint smell, which makes me wonder if the 72 hour odor protection is really true. I don't go a day without a shower so I could never fully test those 72 straight hours lol, but I'm a little worried the scent wouldn't last. I didn't do anything too strenuous that day... just a short walk and a 15 minute workout, but I didn't expect the deodorant feeling to fade. I want to assume it's only because the deodorant itself is more of a gel like texture and I'm use to solid, so it was a different experience. I still love it though! And Dry Idea never let a stinky smell come through so it gets the job done right :)


Above you can see the roll-on top of deodorant and to the right, how it glides clearly (my arm for example) on the skin.


DryIdea Advanced Dry Deodorant comes in aerosol spray, clear gel, solid and roll on-which is the one I tried. They come in 3 different scents: Fresh, Unscented, and Powder Fresh.

You can enter the Dry Idea Sweepstakes for a chance to win a grand prize of $500! 
Or 10 additional winners to win $50!

Three special readers have the chance to win your very own Dry Idea Advanced Dry Deodorant, of your choice in the aerosol spray, clear gel, or roll on. Enter through Rafflecopter Below!! :)


a Rafflecopter giveaway



This post is made possible by Purex, for allowing me to be an Insider and providing me with the supplies to test and review. 

TruBaby Bubbly Baby Body & Hair Wash Review


TruKids TruBaby Bubbly Baby Body & Hair Wash is made for babies soft skin, made with NO parabens, phthalates, bpa, gluten, or Sodium Laurel Sulfates. It is dermatologist tested and safely removes surface oil, and dirt without stripping or drying sensitive skin. It has a soft scent of citrus made with only essential oils in a mild coconut derived cleanser.


TruKid makes several different products, ranging from sun care, bath care, hair care, and baby care. They use natural ingredients and they all have the cool, easy and fun to use hand pump!

I love the smell of TruBaby body/hair wash! It smells so good like oranges and grapefruit. It leaves your skin feeling clean and fresh, and I experienced no problems! I used it on my son and his response to it was "mmmm...this smells soooo good!!!"  TruKid/TruBaby is definitely a brand I would recommend.

*You can get your very own free bottle of Bubbly Body Wash when you spend $30 or more at TruKid.com
Just use the coupon code: bubblymom

 *Or you can get a free bottle of Sunny Days SPF 30 = face & body stick with any purchase of $30 or more using the coupon code: sunnymom


And be sure to visit TruKid on Facebook and Twitter :)


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

God Gave Us Easter - Book Review

Disclaimer: I received the following product(s) in exchange for my review. All opinions my own. 


"God Gave Us Easter" is a children's book written by Lisa Tawn Bergren and art drawn by Laura J. Bryant


   A sweet story of a little bear cub and her family, preparing to celebrate Easter. The Papa bear explains how Easter is even better then Christmas, because Easter is the remembrance that we get to be with Jesus forever. Papa Bear puts the story of Easter into a children's perspective, using the metaphors of a tree that fell down and in place of it, grew little trees from the pine cones, and a river that turns into an ocean. He explains how an egg is the symbol for the tomb Jesus was in, that, like the shell of an egg, the tomb cracked open and Jesus rose from the dead, that Jesus is life itself. The story also talks about God's promise of the rainbow, to never send another flood. Scriptures from the Bible are put into words and a cute story to allow kids to gain a better understanding in what God has done for us. As always, I love the beautiful art in the "God Gave Us.." books, especially the dying of the Easter eggs in this one :) Cute book for kids, and a great gift idea for Easter baskets!

You can purchase God Gave Us Easter at Waterbrook Multnomah and download this cute coloring page for your kids to enjoy  :)

Also check out the authors blog page for more of her books & fun!



*This review is made possible by the Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group via Blogging for Books,  
by providing me a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.

House of Cupcakes Opening!

Costume Reviewers are launching a new website called House of Cupcakes And to celebrate, their having a special Rafflecopter giveaway on their page, for a chance to win cash! There's 5 ways to enter and you could win $75, $50, or $25 -via PayPal !!!

Enter HERE!




L'OREAL Magic B.B. Cream Review

I received L'OREAL's Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Cream in the "light" shade from SheSpeaks to review. The L'Oreal B.B. cream is made with Vitamins C & E and is said to prime, perfect, hydrate and correct the skin. It comes in 4 different shades: Deep, Medium, Fair and Light.

I have to say, I hate this stuff. I gave it a shot because, what doesn't sound good about a cream smoothing out your skin, making it look flawless?! L'Oreal B.B. Cream contains self-adjusting beads that are said to instantly transform your skin tone. You begin by applying a dot of cream on your fingertip, and rub into your skin. The B.B. Cream comes out of the tube as a whitish color and rubs in as "skin color" or orange in my case. When I rubbed it on my face, it started tingling a slight burn so I washed it off after I took a picture. It does not wash off well. I used soap and warm water and noticed the cream seemed to stick in my pores. I showered and when I got out of the shower, I used a cotton ball with alcohol, to wipe my acne areas, and the cotton ball was cleaning even more orangey cream off my face!? It really didn't want to wash off my face very easily.

Below is my experience in photos...The lighting doesn't quite show the color of the cream, but aside from color, it really didn't make a difference in skin smoothing. It also left a dry feeling in my skin...its made to hydrate, so why did I feel like my skin became DE-hydrated? I'm really not sure, but sadly, my experience with this cream wasn't very good and can't say I'd recommend it.




You can find L'Oreal's Magic B.B. Cream on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. It is available for purchase at most mass food & drug retailers nationwide with a retail price of $10.95 for 1 fl oz.

#MagicBBCream @LOrealParisUSA @SheSpeaksUp


This post is sponsored by SheSpeaks, in providing me a tube of L'OREAL's Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Cream
to test and review. All opinions are my own.

MorningStar Corn-Dog Review!

Another MorningStar Farms review for you! This time I tried out their corn dogs!

If you remember before, I posted about MorningStar Farms chik patties... MorningStar Farms makes all kinds of veggie foods to substitute for your meat. Whether you are a full on vegetarian, want a different kind of meal, or choose to do Meatless Mondays, MorningStar Farms can be a great addition to your meals! I love that they have so many choices and can't wait to try them all. I chose corn dogs this time around, because my son loves corn dogs so I figured, if these taste good, they would be a great substitute for real corn dogs, since MorningStar's are healthier.

We microwaved the corn dogs, but you could cook them in the oven if you want. Just depends on what texture you want, really. I microwaved 2 at a time, for about 2 1/2 minutes and they left my kitchen smelling so good! That was shocking part #1. The second part would be passing my sons "taste test" lol. He took his first bite and said "mmm..delicious!!!" Another Win!!! So I had to try it for myself, of course. And I agree, MorningStar Farms corn dogs really are delicious! They even taste better then the real, meat ones! It's kind of a bummer that they only sell 4 corn dogs to a pack, and their smaller then the usual, but the taste and health benefits make up for it. The only problem I ran across, is that if you microwave them and let it sit in the microwave for a few minutes after cooked, (like I did, getting distracted and forgot lol) then they tend to be a little gummy and harder to chew. Other then that, these are great! Definitely have my recommendation.


You can find MorningStar on their website and Facebook.


 This post is sponsored by Bzzagent in providing me coupons to purchase products to test and review. All opinions are my own.

Buying Games For Cheap!

Game Fan Shop has tons of games for many gaming systems... Xbox, Wii, PS3, Computer. They also sell point cards for the Wii and Xbox, SonyP3, even Apple iTunes cards! The games range from children to adults, in several genres, so there's something for everybody!

Game Fan holds weekly deals off of the already discounted game prices so you can find some amazing deals there! Also If you find a lower advertised price from another popular game shop (Steam/Origin/GameStop/Game.co.uk, ect), Game Fan Shop will beat it by 5% of the difference! And you get lifetime warranty on all purchased games.

So what are you waiting for? Go check out Game Fan Shop and add to that gaming collection!!! 

Pizza Balls+Recipe

I've been seeing the Pizza Ball food going around on Pinterest for a few days now and decided to give it a shot. Who doesn't love pizza right? And shaped in a ball makes them so fun to eat.

What you need to make Pizza Balls:

A can of biscuits (I got a can of 8 biscuits and cut each in half so I made 16 Pizza Balls)
Sliced Pepperoni
Cheese of your choice cut into squares
1 beaten egg
Pizza Sauce
Parmesan & Garlic (optional)

Flatten the biscuit to about the size of the palm of your hand, then place some pizza sauce (optional and I used Alfredo) then layer on a pepperoni slice, then cheese, then another pepperoni slice and fold edges of biscuit and shape into a ball.

Do this with all biscuits and place into a greased dish. Brush the beaten egg across all biscuits and sprinkled Parmesan cheese and Garlic over top if you like. Bake in the oven at 425 degrees til biscuits are lightly browned and all the way cooked through!



Eat warm and dip in Marinara sauce. Delicious!