Purex Fabric Softener Sheets

Did you know, Purex Fabric Softener Sheets hold 3 times the fragrance then other fabric softeners! But they don't just leave your laundry smelling fantastic, they also leave your clothes feeling soft, reduce static cling and repel pet hair and lint! A must for pet owners.

   These little Fabric softener sheets have plenty of other uses too. They can keep your entire home smelling fresh, by tucking them away in little areas of your house. Your hamper, linen closets, drawers...there's many places in your home that you could hide these lil guys. Fabric softener sheets also work really well at keep dust away from your floor edging, or wiping pet hair off of your furniture. It will clean and leave your place smelling great.

   I keep a box of Purex Fabric Softener Sheets in my pantry, along with my other launder supplies, and every time I open the door, it smells so fresh and lovely like the Sweet Lavender scented Purex fabric softening sheets. I love it! Although once I used them in my drying, (I used two sheets per load) I didn't smell the Purex fabric sheets on my clothes. That was kind of a bummer because I love my clothes smelling freshly scented. But at least they left my clothes static free! :)


Purex Fabric Softener Sheets come in two scents: 
Sweet Lavender & Mountain Breeze. 

Found in Walmart and are coming soon to other retailers! 

Two special reader's will win a coupon 
to get a free box of Purex Fabric Softener Sheets!
Enter with 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.

National Lasagna Day!

Today, July 29th is National Lasagna Day!!

There's not a whole lot of ideas for this day, but the typical, make lasagna and eat it! You could make a lasagna meal and let your kids help! Teach them each step of the way, how it is made.
To make it even more fun, watch the lasagna loving cat...Garfield, all day!! :)
via
Make some pretend play felt lasagna for your kids to enjoy
like this one from And Next Comes L

And if you're really feeling your crafty side, you could make a lasagna/noodle train
 like this one over at Chicago Parent.


Whether it be lasagna bites, lasagna rolls or just plain ol'lasagna...
Enjoy this Lasagnaey Day and maybe make it for dinner! :)

Magic Milk Straws

Have you ever tried the Magic Milk Straws?? 
My son loves these and recently I found they have more flavors 
then just chocolate, vanilla and strawberry!

They have quite a variety of flavors including 
Birthday Cake, S'mores, Root Beer, Cookie's & Cream, 
Strawberry Banana, Neapolitan, Cotton Candy and more!!

Recently we tried the new Dippin Dots Birthday Cake and S'mores kind. 
Both were good but S'mores definitely won between the two. 
Delicious tasting and gets your picky kids to drink milk!! 
I know it makes me want to try them all! Yum.


Pizza Pasta with Hotdogs!


I came across this idea one day when I forgot to pull out meat to defrost, for dinner. We needed a nice meal and all I had meat-wise that was ready to use, were lunch meat and hotdogs. We only buy Beef hotdogs so I figured they would work good in a pasta dish! I began by cutting up hotdogs and onions into little pieces and sauteing them in Plum Sauce. The first time I made this, I used minced garlic instead of the onions and that was even better, but this time around I only had an onion and it came out just fine.
 
While these sauteed together and the hotdogs started to brown, I boiled veggie pasta noodles in salted water. Once cooked through, I drained and added butter, garlic powder, Cajun and a little bit of pepper. Then mixed in the meat/onion mix and added Bacon & Provolone Sauce. Stirred it all together and added a bit of shredded cheese throughout. Quick, Easy and Tasty dinner!



                    Sided with buttered toast and peas.
 

Always a great meal for National Hotdog Day

Down Time+Giveaways

Sad day for me, I have to take it easy on my blogging for the next few weeks or so. 
I hurt my wrist so it makes typing, browsing internet, and all wrist capabilities painful to keep up with. 
But don't worry, I will be here and there when my wrist allows! 
I have lots of reviews to come so I can't be kept away for too long ;) 

In the mean time, Check out the giveaways I'm holding! You chances to win are high! :)

National Hotdog Day!

Today, July 23rd, is National Hotdog Day! 
Another silly fun holiday to celebrate :)

I already know what I'm making for dinner tonight...and surprisingly it's not just hotdogs! I'm making a pizza pasta with beef hotdogs as the meat filling! I've done this before and it's delicious! 

Some fun things to do for this day are....

Making some sort of a hotdog fun craft with your lil one.
Maybe these paper hotdogs from Having Fun At Home will inspire you :)


Or making these squiddy hotdog noodle eats for lunch!
Like these over at Crafts For Kids
And making Corn-dog muffins to go with it! What a lunch that would be! 
Or make these adorable hot dog cookies from Munchkin Munchies!
And if you're really in the hotdog spirit, you could even paint your nails fun
like these ones from Totally Cool Nails!


Have a Happy Hotdog Day!

Chuao Maple Bacon Candy Bar

I was at the World Market store the other day and they have quite a variety of candies from around the world. Unique flavors you never see in ordinary grocery stores. They have a section in the candy isle, filled with delicious and different candy bar flavors...I would love to try them all, but this one stuck out and ended up being bought. The maple bacon Chuao Chocolate Candy Bar handcrafted by chef Michael Autonorbi.. Pricey at $4.99 but that's the unique flavor for ya. It's an all natural cacao chocolate and gluten free, made with "crisp bacon, delicate maple sweetness and bonfire smoked sea salt, bathed in milk chocolate" Sounds sooo good doesn't it!?



It wasn't nearly as good as it sounded. It was really salty and highly lacking in bacon. The bacon pieces were so tiny it was as if they weren't even in there. The sea salt was too strong...but the milky chocolate made up for it all. Chocolate is chocolate and makes almost everything better. This won't be a candy I will buy again, knowing how salty it was, but I would absolutely 
 love to try all of the Chuao candy bar flavors!!


This post was in no way sponsored. I paid for the Chuao candy bar out of my own pocket for the desire of my own personal pleasure.

National Lollipop Day!

Today, July 20th is National Lollipop Day!

Here are some super fun ways to celebrate!

Make your own lollipops using lollipop sticks and jolly ranchers!

Like these ones form Joni Loves To Cook!

Print out this paper activity over at Crazy For First Grade to describe the adjectives of a lollipop.
Have your lil one design their very own paper lollipop! 
Much like this one over at A Simple Favor, so cute!

There's several fun ideas you could do to make National Lollipop Day fun.... but don't forget the most important part...
Indulge yourself in a lollipop! :)

Morning at the Lake ❤

Yesterday morning, we spent our time at the Lake, eating donuts and skipping rocks. I love Summer days like that, when it's warm enough to enjoy the outdoors with the family, doing things you love.




What's a family moment you've experienced 
or want to experience this Summer?

Sea-Band Acupressure Wrist Band and Anti-Nausea Gum

Do you ever struggle with Nausea from Motion sickness?  
Below are two natural products made to ease your nausea from 
all sorts of common motion sickness.

   The Sea-Bands Acupressure Wrist Bands are a drug free, natural option to treat nausea, in all cases, from traveling, morning sickness of pregnancy, chemotherapy induced nausea and more. Each box comes with a pair of bands you wear on your wrist, treating the nausea with acupressure, causing pressure to occur on the P6, the pressure point between the tendons in your wrist, helping relieve all hints of nausea. These bands have been clinically tested and work within 5minutes. They are recommended and used by hospitals and doctors around the world. They are reusable, washable and latex-free, having no expiration. They can also be used in children ages 3 and up.

    Another remedy for the relief of nausea is the Sea-Band Anti-Nausea Ginger Gum. This gum also hold relief for nausea in traveling, morning sickness in pregnancy, chemotherapy induced nausea and more. It could also be paired with the Sea-Band acupressure wrist bands to produce a more effective cure in having motion sickness and nausea. The Anti-Nausea Ginger Gum holds natural soothing properties, as ginger is a medicinal herb, each piece of gum contains 25mg of ginger oil which is equivalent to 8g of fresh ginger root. The gum contains: gum base, corn syrup, natural sugar, soya lecithin, menthol, color (titanium dioxide), glazing agent, carnauba wax and natural ginger oil. It is gluten free and contains 24 pieces of gum per box. You take two pieces of gum when nausea sets and you should be nausea-free.

    My husband gets simulator sickness, which is a 'condition where a person exhibits symptoms similar to motion sickness caused by playing computer/simulation/video games'. This condition makes him sad because there are a lot of games out there he wishes to play or watch, but his motion sickness kicks in overdrive and makes him feel extremely nauseous. He was very pleased to hear he would be testing these Sea-Band products, in hopes of fixing his motion sickness problem. The acupressure wrist bands are said to work within 5 minutes...and as he wore them, nothing changed. But I found out, these bands only work for motion sickness! Not his simulator sickness...soo..He still had the sick feeling...until he popped in a piece of the Anti-Nausea Ginger Gum! He didn't read the instructions, saying to take 2 pieces, so he only took one and said it still worked! Though he really didn't like the flavor...
 
   It has quite a surprising spice when you chew it! (I know because I just had to try it lol) The first bite is like a shocking sting when the flavor releases, but after that, the flavor leaves and the gum becomes really gross to chew. It's a bit like the old Juicy Fruit, that only has flavor in the first bite or two, then loses it instantly lol. But in the end, it's the sickness leaving is what matters and the gum seems to do the trick pretty well! I suppose pairing it with the bands could help it work even greater and I will test these myself when I travel!


You can find both of these Sea-Band products in most mass market retail, supermarkets and drug stores in the U.S. As well as online retailers and at http://www.sea-band.com/shop



I was provided the above products in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own.

I Won The Monster Republic Giveaway!!

 I'm so excited, I won this fun giveaway for $75 worth of Monster Republic clothing from Marino Bambinos!!

I received two shirts and a pair of shorts for my lil man. 


One shirt is red with a mustache faced shark on the front and a sea theme on the back 
(and oddly, this shirt came smelling really good like laundry soap!)

And the other shirt is A Pirate shirt, with an Octopus pirate on the front and a word search on the back!

The shorts are just adorable with a a pocket on the side and design on one leg. 
They even have a draw string to adjust to the right fit! 

(The Pirate shirt and the shorts came with little envelopes with stickers inside! What fun!)
I never knew about the Monster Republic clothing line until the giveaway Marino Bambino held, and I'm so happy I won. These three pieces of clothing are so soft and comfortable for my boy to wear.
Monster Republic has so many cute and unique choices for boys, ages 12 months to 10 years old. 
A new clothing line I just love!

Thank you Marino Bambinos and Monster Republic 
for hosting an awesome giveaway and choosing me to win! :)


Cooking with 10" Stone Earth Pan by Ozeri

The 10" Stone Earth Pan by Ozeri, is a durable cooking pan, made with a natural stone coating, derived from Germany with a heavy-gauge die-cast-aluminum interior. Unlike other traditional cookware, the Ozeri pan is 100% PFOA-Free, keeping harmful chemicals away. Being that it is non-stick, it is also eco-friendly, which means not needing to use cooking sprays! It has a scratch-resistant coating, making it easier to clean and it contains no trace of harmful chemicals or metals. Its handle is made of a heat-resistant silicon, for comfort and protection and it has a magnetized base for rapid heat transfer, made to heat quickly without needing to turn your stove top dial past medium.



I found this pan to be wonderful! I seasoned the pan per instructions, wiping 1/2 tsp of Olive Oil throughout. It holds to its word on being non-sticking and I only needed to hold the heat on medium 
or just below, to cook thoroughly. (Using a wooden utensil keeps the pan nice, and long lasting.) 
I love the size of it, fitting a burrito size tortilla shell to brown on both sides with ease. It cooks evenly and the washing afterward is so simple! This pan has become my new favorite. Having good pan makes cooking more fun so this pan is a great one to have.

My husband, who is the chef in our family, agrees. His words were "I want a whole set of these pans!
And anybody who knows my husband, knows...he only likes top quality!


UPDATE: the Ozeri Stone Earth Pan made me like Eggs again!!! I have hated eggs for a very very long time... Even while using our great Rachel Ray pans! But when I made scrambled eggs in the Ozeri Stone Earth pan, they came out amazingly delicious!! A shock to my taste buds. It must be the way it cooks to make them so good. Even their color is better! 
I am in love with this pan and truly recommend it!! 

*Side Note: The Handle does get hot. Be careful.

Checkout the Ozeri Stone Earth Pan on Amazon
for purchase, and more information+reviews.



This post is made possible by Ozeri in providing me the Ozeri Stone Earth Pan to review. 
All opinions are my own.

Okonomiyaki+Onigiri

My husband made Okonomiyaki and Onigiri for dinner the other night. A Japanese style meal of a pancake containing cabbage and sukiyaki meat with sauce and other ingredients, with seaweed wrapped rice balls on the side. To make the Okonomiyaki, he used a batter mix from the Asian food mart nearby, mixing it all together and cooking it in a pan, much like you do pancakes.




Once cooked, you drizzle Japanese Mayo and Okonomiyaki sauce across. Then eat and enjoy!




Next, my husband made the Onigiri, rice balls. He cooked up the rice, and in a separate dish, he cooked Salmon to fill the rice with. Once cooled, he balled the rice and stuffed it with salmon, then wrapped in seaweed. Placed these in the fridge to eat cold and enjoy. I personally rather eat rice balls warm with some dipping sauce :) But my husband says I just need to have them from Japan to see how good they really are ;)



National Tapioca Pudding Day!

Today, July 15th, is National Tapioca Pudding Day! 
There's pretty much a "national" day for everything isn't there?

I am not a fan of Tapioca pudding...those little balls just make me gag lol...
but there are some interesting tapioca recipes you can find...here's one that looks nice, 
made with Coconut and Cayenne-Spiced Mango. Looks pretty enough right?
You can find the recipe over at Bon Appétit

source

Arrtextry Inspirational Posters

Arrtextry makes high quality, colorful posters, that display the marriage of art and text together, relating and reflecting each other to make a beautiful image and inspiration on your wall. These posters are produced in a Heildelberg Showcase facility that contain 5 and 6 speed masters with in-line UV coating and state-of-the-art direct-to-plate system presses. The text comes from the recently published self-help book, titled "Now O'Clock" written by William Garcia, inspiring you to think, be or do. He has teamed up with an artist in Miami to make Arttexrty come to life.  With 8 posters to choose from, each one different from the other, with a new quote and colorful artwork, all inspiring a positive influence to see everyday. These posters come in two different sizes: 16x20 and 18x24, except Lady Feminique Classic only coming in 16x20.

If you use the coupon code : AMBI19 by August 19, 2013, you can get 30% off your order!

I chose the "Purpose and Passion" poster to review. It is a nice poster, looks just as it shows on the website (all but the flash of my camera lol). It's in good quality and I love that the artist signed the poster directly to me. I have it hanging in my bedroom as a nice inspiration upon waking.


You can find Arrtextry on Twitter, Facebook, and their website.
   THREE special readers will have your choice of an 
Arrtextry Poster to own. 
Enter with Rafflecopter below!

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.

Personalized Piczzle Photo Puzzles

I recently had the opportunity to review a customized puzzle from Piczzle Photo Puzzles, which came at a great time because my son loves putting puzzles together now! And because he has found a new love for puzzles, I decided to let him design his very own picture puzzle. He was ecstatic! So he started setting up his toys in different "scenes" for me to take pictures of, and narrowed it down to one picture for his puzzle. Hulk Vs. Abomination. He loves it!

The puzzle we chose is a Medium, (8.5"x11") cardboard picture puzzle, containing 48 pieces for a more challenging activity. The puzzle allows you to add in a personal text, with two lines, with a max of 35 characters per line. My son chose Hulk Vs. Abomination for his one line, as to describe the picture :) I was hoping I could choose where to place the text, since the photo I took had a big white space at the bottom, but the site says the staff will choose to place the words where they think is best. I was so pleased that they placed the words exactly where I wanted them!! And the quality of the Piczzle Puzzle is great! It's made of thick cardboard and easy to put together. So far my son has put his puzzle together and depuzzled it at least 3times in one day...I'd say he's enjoying it :)






 Piczzle Photo Puzzle products range from all types of puzzle design options, using their holiday designs or choosing basic, designing it how you want, having that specific shape, whether it be a heart, circle or rectangle. You can choose the puzzle to be cardboard or wooden, and set the amount of pieces you would like it to have, between 6 and 2,000!

You can find Piczzle Photo Puzzles on Facebook, Youtube and Piczzle's Website

If you use the coupon code: TemporaryWaffle21 You can get 21% discount on all prices. 
Valid until: Tuesday, August-06, 2013


Now to the Giveaway!! 
One Reader will Win their very own customized, 
Small Cardboard Piczzle Photo Puzzle!!!
{enter with rafflecopter below!}


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.