Looking for a cheap wine to get you through the weekend? Here is a quick review of : Nbed 2gether Torrontes.
Brand: Nbed 2Gether Torrontes Price: $5 (normally $16 @ Fry's Food) Taste: Sweet/Dry blend Comments: This was my first time trying this brand of wine. It was normally $16.99 at Fry's (Kroger) and it was on sale for around $5 so I thought I would give it a whirl. At first, it tasted dry and I wasn't sure if I would like it but after taking a few sips it seemed to be a nice blend of dry and sweet.
*I was not compensated nor given anything for this review.
Generally, I'm pretty cheap and there really isn't any hiding that fact. Although, I've found there are a few things in life that quality is more important then price such as large electronics and most recently, luggage. You see, I bought a cute luggage set which was black with pink polka dots. It was such a neat set and I was happy to score the 5 piece set for only $170! I thought I wouldn't have to invest in luggage again because I didn't do an overwhelming amount of travel.
But then, this happened:
This happened to my suitcase after only owning it for 2 years, literally as I was walking out the door on my way to Blogher11. It was quite frustrating. Mainly because I bought this at a gift shop on one of our adventures and there was no type of warranty at all. Basically, I'm out of luck on this one.
So before our most recent travel to California, I decided to shop for another piece of luggage. Something sturdy that could hold through a flight, a camping trip and many road trips to California. I was asked to check out the Briggs and Riley line; BRX Adventure Gear.
I found a wide selection and different colors of the BRX line.
I also found that they have a lifetime warranty, score! They also offered free shipping over $99 but I am a touchy feely person and I need to try it out before I spend money on it.
We went to Suitcases and More in Scottsdale, AZ. The staff was very friendly and answered all of my questions. I had the chance to take out all of the luggage throughout the store before checking out the BRX line by Briggs and Riley. I was able to thoroughly look at each piece of luggage that was part of the Briggs and Riley line. I liked the quality of each piece, these pieces seemed more reliable then the "cheaper" pieces of luggage that I had already owned. I did notice they didn't have all of the items of luggage that the website had offered.
After evaluating price, sizes and colors, I chose the Rolling Duffel bag offered by Briggs and Riley. I liked the convenience of the wheels and the front handle as well as the room in the inside. When I asked the sales rep what I had to do if I needed to fulfill the warranty he said nothing, just bring it in and they take care of everything. Great! So, is it perfect for the weekend traveler?
Yes! I was able to pack 4 people's clothing for 3 days in this rolling duffel bag!! No need for multiple suitcases in our travel plans.
This past weekend we took a trip to Southern California. We were celebrating my daughter's 11th birthday and enjoying some good family time. While I'm not the best planner, I tried to create a master list of everything we needed. I'm thankful that we live so close to a Walmart so I can get my last minute items quickly. One of the items we needed was sunblock since we were in the pool nearly everyday this summer we had exhausted our supply. While we're on the topic of sunblock, we found out earlier this summer that there is a reason that there are expiration dates on suncare items. If its over a year old, it's probably best to best to throw it out because it isn't as effective and will cause the skin to be more prone to burning compared to a new bottle/can of sunblock.
I was happy to have been asked to try out Neutrogena's wetskin sunblock. As with anything I buy, I try to find a coupon first. I found a coupon for $2 off 1 Neutrogena Suncare product here: https://www.neutrogena.com/sp/specialoffer/sun_save2/coupon-register.do. When I was on the site, http://www.neutrogena.com, I tried to find out what "wet skin" meant. I initially thought it meant, it feels like a new form of skin (like a wet suit, don't laugh). However, I found out it is a literal meaning of, you can put this sunblock on wet skin! Awesome! Because if you have kids, you know how hard it is to convince them to get out of the pool, dry off, reapply sunblock and then get back in the water. This allows me to chase the kids and apply it, no matter how much they protest!
When I went shopping for the sunblock, I found that they had a "beach and pool" wetskin sublock for kids! Even better, 70SPF! What I also found out is that Neutrogena is the only sunblock I could find that "heliloplex" technology which means it protects against UVA and UVB rays. The more protection, the better!
While at the beach, the kids got to dig for sand crabs for the first time, check them out in the video!
So how did it hold up? Here is what I liked:
High SPF
Hypoallergenic (Tyler has eczema and tends to react to certain soaps etc)
Waterproof (a must for any Summer time activity)
Easy application (again, those kids only stay still for so long)
No smell (I'll never understand why some sunblocks smell like death)
Cons?
None really but the price was a little less than $11 but I feel like it's a good investment to protect my children's skin, especially since we are prone to burning and my family has a history of skin cancer.
Now I know it technically says "beach and pool" but I also used this at Disneyland, it worked great on me and the kids!
At Grandma's too
See more of our fun trip here:
This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study forCollective Bias,, all opinions are my own.
I hope many of you got to attend #TheIceCreamSocial at Walmart that I told you about last week. We attended with all 4 of the kids. All that the kids knew was that we were going to get Ice Cream, we surprised them with the Ice Cream Social! The bonus to the #IceCreamSocial (besides the yummy ice cream) was the fact that the ice cream was free! We immediately found the ice cream stand with the Nestle Lil Drums, we got to choose from Chocolate Swirl or Vanilla Swirl.
Half of us tried the Vanilla and the other half, chocolate! I enjoyed a Vanilla, which is great because it still had chocolate swirled in so it was like getting the best of both worlds!
I was asked to provide an honest review on the Walmart.com site, here are my thoughts:
I'm giving this 5 starts because normally, I don't indulge in Drumsticks because of the fat/calorie content. When we tried these at a sampling event, I was excited to find out that the Vanilla flavor only has 5 grams of fat! Also, these aren't really little! These are a great size, perfect for a dessert for mom and the kids! I was also please because there wasn't an overwhelming "nut" topping on them and of course the best thing about a Drumstick is the chocolate bottom and these do have that chocolate bottom! The cost is also great, it averages about $.50 a cone! No need to go out to fight the heat for a cool treat when these are in your freezer!
So we were on our way to a birthday party and we weren't able to pick up a box but we decided to just look at some ice cream before we left:
I love low calorie options.
Kids, well they love any ice cream products (lol).
This year, Yoplait Light is giving women a great new way to get ready for special occasions with the launch of the new Two Week Tune Up plan.
Whether it’s for a class reunion, a birthday, or your best friend’s wedding, Yoplait Light’s Two Week Tune Up could help you lose five pounds in two weeks by:
Replacing your breakfast and lunch with a Yoplait Light yogurt, a whole grain, and a fruit
Eating a diet rich in lean protein and non-fat dairy, including a sensible dinner, beverages, and snacks
Walking 30-40 minutes daily
Before I started the two week tune up, I had no idea how many delicious flavors of Yoplait Light there were!
Apple Turnover Apricot Mango Banana Cream Pie Black Forest Cake Blackberry Blueberry Patch Boston Cream Pie Harvest Peach Key Lime Pie Lemon Cream Pie Orange Crème Pineapple Upside Down Cake Raspberry Cheesecake Red Raspberry Red Velvet Cake Strawberries 'N Bananas Strawberry Strawberry Orange Sunrise Strawberry Shortcake Triple Berry Torte Very Cherry Very Vanilla White Chocolate Strawberry LIGHT THICK & CREAMY Blueberry Pie Cherry Cobbler Cinnamon Roll French Vanilla Key Lime Pie Lemon Meringue Mixed Berry Orange Crème Peaches and Cream Strawberry 4-PACK Blueberry Patch Key Lime Pie Strawberry Very Vanilla
I did the Two Week Tune up with Yoplait and replaced a portion of my lunch and a snack with the a Yoplait Light Yogurt. Along with eating Yoplait Light I increased my activity with hiking or even walking around the neighborhood with the kids and the dog.
In two weeks I lost 3 pounds, which to some might not be a lot but to me it's fab! I'm going to continue my routine to hopefully shed a few more pounds these next few weeks.
Want to try Yoplait Light with a coupon? Get your coupon HERE!
Giveaway:
I'm giving way a Yoplait Light yogurt gift pack that includes 1 VIP coupon for a free Yoplait Yogurt, a gym bag, a reflective wrist wallet and a pedometer to keep you moving and motivated.
*This coupon offer for Yoplait Light yogurt is not valid in some states, including California, Idaho, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Jersey, Nevada, North Dakota and Tennessee.
How to Enter: Leave me a comment saying what your favorite flavor of Yoplait Light yogurt is or why you would want to take the two week challenge.
Legal Goodies: I was not compensated for this post. The coupon, prize pack, information and giveaway were all provided by Yoplait through MyBlogSpark
Soft Scrub newest product is Total w/ Bleach! I like the Total cleaners because you can use them at any angle because it just gets really annoying having to continuously shake a bottle just so it can work so I can clean! I don't use a lot of bleach in my cleaning but I do use it in those must need bleach areas such as the bathroom. The Total Scrub w/ Bleach definitely helps with cleaning toilets. Especially when you have boys (enough said there).
Right now I am giving away 4 coupons for FREE Soft Scrub cleaners 4 Winners will be chosen! How to enter:
Just leave a comment saying why you like Soft Scrub Total or why you would want to try it. (mandatory)
Optional Bonus Entries: Follow me via one or all of the ways on the right side of this blog, leaving me a comment for each.
GOOD LUCK!
Legal Goodies: This giveaway will run through 3/7. Winners will be chosen at random. I received these coupons by being a Soft Scrub Captain, I was not compensated in any way for this post. All opinions are my own. Please let me know if you have any questions!
One of my "goals" for this year is to maintain a healthy lifestyle and lose a few pounds. As someone who has lost 30 pounds before, I know that this takes a lot of work. One key point to maintaining a healthy lifestyle is to stay active. Another is eating right and using portion control. This means cutting down calories and eliminating really fatty foods.
I like to cook healthy foods for my family but since they aren't here all the time and I don't like cooking for "1". To avoid going through the fast lane when it's just me, I will keep some meals in the freezer. Typically the foods I enjoy are pastas and the occasional pizza.
When I went shopping for a few meals from Lean Cuisine to stock in my freezer, I found that they had a lot larger variety to choose from than I thought they had. Along with their classic meals, they now carry Market Creations which steam in the bags to make everything crisp! They also carry sandwiches and a snack line which includes spring rolls. They had over 10 pizza's to choose from. These are great to stock up on because if the kids are craving a pizza night, I can eat pizza too without feeling guilty!
I tried the Asiago Tortellini and it was delicious! You can print a coupon for $1/2 Market Creations at www.leancuisine.com!
I also tried one of their wood fired pizza's
Roasted Garlic Chicken Pizza
If you go to LeanCuisine.com, you can track your calories and convert Weight Watchers points. While I am not on Weight Watchers, I know it has been successful for some!
While stocking up on some meals, I needed to stock up on dessert. If you haven't had a Skinny Cow dessert, you are really missing out! They have snack fudge bars with only 50 calories, ice cream bars and ice cream.
My favorite is the mint ice cream sandwiches. Only 140 calories and 2 grams of fat!
Skinny Cow also came out with Truffle Bars! I tried the French Vanilla and the White Mint which only have 100 calories per bar! If I am going to treat myself to 100 calories this is how I'm gonna do it!
Of course, I never leave the house without a coupon, I printed this one www.skinnycow.com!
I was compensated by collective Bias for my time, all opinions are my own.
Meet Star, she is our beloved dog who is not only our pet but has been a member of our family for almost 10 years. She is just awesome, she'll stay by your side, go camping with you and take YOU for runs. She loves to play, sleep, eat. Not necessarily in that order but those are her most favorite things.
One thing Star isn't really picky about is food, but as a mom I am. I'd like her to have a nutritional meal just as I would my kids. But, food can get pricey especially the bigger the dog you have. I was recently asked to try out Kibbles 'n Bits Bistro. Okay well not me but Star was asked to try it, I am just the "buyer". So off to Walmart I went to pick her up a bag!
A few things catch my eye when I pick up a bag:
100% Complete Balanced Meal
Tender Meaty Bits
Antioxidant Rich
Easy Zip Open/Shut
Only $11.88 a bag for 16 lb! That is less than a buck a pound.
When I opened it, I noticed the food was soft which is something I know makes Star happy! At this point poor Star is is saying "Mom, what's up with the pictures?! Feed Me!"
So what does Star think?
Well Star gives it 2 paws up!
*Look for a coupon on the bag, I didn't see one at my store but some are saying their Walmart has them*
If you have questions or want to know more about why your dog acts the way he or she does, check out the Kibbles n Bits online resource here: http://www.kibblesnbits.com/kibbles-dog-care/
I really am not a fan of cleaning. One of my least favorite chores has to be mopping. But, it's unavoidable! Years ago I decided that carpet was just too hard to keep clean, as in when everything got spilled on it and stained it. So we ripped it all out and made the floors wood and lamininate. Good idea yes, but of course now you can see every thing on it.
For years, I have been faithful to the Libman Wonder mop. It definitely gets the job done but I am tired of being a slave to the mop bucket. It's hard to mop for a few feet then wash it out then re wet it, then repeat. I'd love to get a steam mop but truthfully I can't justify the cost one right now. However, I need a better option or I won't be able to mop anymore because of the back pain!
This weekend, I was asked to go to Walmart and pick up the Libman Freedom Mop and give my opinion. After finding it on the "mop rack", I was first drawn to the sticker that says $5 rebate! Sweet! It's $19.96 so after the rebate it's only $14.96. You can find the rebate at
www.libman.com.
Looking over the mop I am already loving it's features:
FREE of having to use any batteries. I love not having to go through batteries, just an easy squeeze. FREE of having to buy an expensive solution, I can use any solution I like. FREE of disposable pads. Cheaper for me, better for the envornment.
When I got home and tried it out, it seemed really easy to use. First, I put in my favorite solution which was simple. The ease of use was great, the spray came out easily and the pad was really sturdy. I also loved the easy swivel head it has, it made ggetting under the table and cabinets so easy. My favorite thing about the Freedom Mop is it used to take me about 20 minutes to mop my my kitchen with the old fashioned mop. When I used the Freedom Spray mop, it only took me 5 minutes.
I was compensated for my time by Collecitve Bias. All opinions reflected in this post are my own, I was not asked to write anything specific about the item above.
Today the unusual happened, it snowed in Phoenix Arizona! Now it didn't really stick in the city but for the first time in well forever that we can walk outside and see snow on the mountains! I LOVE cold weather ( I can say that when our cold is in the 50's) but with cold weather comes the sick season. Because I know sickness can take over at any time without warning, I like to stock up on cold and flu items for me and the kids.
One of the things I stock up on is the Pedialyte Singles. You have heard me talk about them before but really, it's important to have these on hand before someone is sick and you can't make it to the store! These have a shelf life of up to 18 months so even if they aren't sick this month or next, I know that if they are ill in the near future I will have them on hand.
I went to Walgreens and actually found a FAB deal on these! They were on sale for $5.49, then they also had a $.50 coupon making it $4.50 but it got better when I used my $1.50 off one printable coupon from HERE!
Pedialyte is used for prevention of dehydration from vomiting and diarrhea. Pedialyte Singles now have a great new kid-approved taste and come in a kid-friendly package! 4-packs are available in Apple, Cherry, and Fruit flavors.
My kids health and comfort are extremely important to me so a few other things I like to keep on hand for cold season are:
Save money with this coupon for $1.50/1 package of Singles! It is a Bricks coupon and will require the download of printing software if you haven't printed a Bricks coupon before. You can print the coupon twice. Please use this URL: http://bit.ly/bEXbq4
Please talk to your doctor before using Pedialyte. Pedialyte is to be used under medical supervision. I was selected for this product review by Collective Bias. All opinions are mine and were not influenced by any third party.
I was recently asked to host a Pedialyte Singles Make 'n Take Party. The point of this party was to get together with a few other moms with young children and create a kit to use like a survival kit when kids are sick. The main focus of this kit was to include Pedialyte Singles. These single serve Pedialyte containers are a convenient one time use package that can be kept on the shelf for up to 18 months. They also come in a package similar to juice boxes, giving it a familiar feel to young ones.
What I love about these new Pedialyte Singles is that I can keep these in the medicine cabinet until we need it. I really dislike having to run to the store when I know my kids need me at home. Also, it is nice to not have to waste a whole bottle of Pedialyte when we don't need to. I really wish these were available a few years ago when my daughter had her tonsils out.
What I chose to put in our kits was:
2 Flavors of Pedialyte Singles Hand Sanitizing Wipes Forehead Cooling Wipes Tissues
Because I wasn't sure how the moms felt about medicines I did not put any type of over the counter meds in the kits. Personally, we always have a bottle of children's motrin/ibuprofen on hand.
As a mom, I feel it's important to be in good health when my kids are sick so I have the energy I need to take care of them. To help with moms health, I also put some Vitamin C packs in the kits for parents to take when kids are sick.
I also made a Make 'n Freeze dinner. These dinners are great to make ahead of time and to freeze for when you don't have the energy to cook. You can find many recipes by searching the term "Once a Month Cooking". For my dinner I made Macaroni and Cheese.
1 2/3 cups dry, small elbow macaroni, cooked and drained 1 teaspoon salt 1 (12 fluid ounce) can Evaporated Milk 1 cup water 2 tablespoons butter or margarine 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
Directions:
Combine salt, evaporated milk, water, and butter in medium sauce pan. Cook over medium-heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in 1 1/2 cups cheese until melted. Add macaroni; mix well. Top with remaining cheese. Cool then freeze. When ready to cook, thaw and then bake on 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until cheese is melted and light brown.
Another idea, place single serving sizes of macaroni in muffin cups and freeze in a container.
The moms and I did a taste test of the Apple flavor of the Pedialyte Singles flavor. One mom thought it tasted like Pedialyte, one mom didn't really like the taste. I also had my 1.5 year old nephew try a sip, he approves of this flavor!
Other ideas to include in a Sick Kit are items that can keep resting kids occupied such as a movie or a coloring book. Pedialyte has printable activities here: http://pedialyte.com/kids.aspx
Pedialyte is used to help prevent dehydration from diarrhea and vomiting and should be used under medical supervision. You can print a coupon (twice) for $1.50/1 Pedialyte Singles here: http://bit.ly/bEXbq4
So we started our holiday countdown at our house. Did you know there less than 40 days till Christmas?! One thing we get every year to enjoy around Christmas is a popcorn Tin. After trying Popcorn Factory popcorn, I am addicted to the taste and they have some great Holiday Tins! I love that the Popcorn Factory not only has tins for Christmas but items such as the Holiday Poinsettia Jumbo Sampler as seen as above. There IS a difference between the popcorn tins you buy in stores and the popcorn ordered from the Popcorn Factory. The taste and quality of the popcorn is superb from the Popcorn Factory. Give and serve quality by purchasing your tin online from Popcorn Factory.
When you order your popcorn this holiday season, it's not only for gifts but can be great for entertaining too!
Recently I had a wine and cheese party and used plastic wine glasses to hold popcorn for guests. Cute right?!
We also used the Try Me Trio for a Halloween Party
Want to try the Popcorn Factory? Use the code Holly15 for 15% off your order(minimum purchase required)! Make sure you order through Shop At Home.com to earn 8% back!
Looking for a cheap wine to get you through the weekend? Here is a quick review of : Nbed 2gether Torrontes.
