Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Mio Liquid Water Enhancer

MiO Liquid Water Enhancer
I recently was able to get a free sample of this off of Facebook.  I got Fruit Punch flavor.  There are several others to choose from:  Berry Pomegranite, Mango Peach, Sweet Tea, Strawberry Watermelon.  I think they run about $4 each, for 24 servings.  You just add a squirt to iced water, stir and it's ready to go. 

I am enjoying it as I write this and plan on buying it when I run out of my free sample.  It'll be great in the summer, or to add to a water bottle.  It's 0 calorie, sugar free.

Mio

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Maci's Marvelous Munchables

Maci got her own blog!  She has been bugging me for weeks now.  So we got her set up.  Check it out!  She would love followers and recipe suggestions.  It's theme is kid friendly recipes.

http://marvelousmunchables.blogspot.com/


Wednesday, March 16, 2011

The Hunger Games Trilogy


The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins are my favorite books of 2010.  I'm a big fan, a big big fan!  I loved the Twilight Saga too.  These stuck with me like the Twilight books did.  I think of them a lot.  I want to read them again.  I can't wait for the movies.  These are addictive. 

The genre is young adult/science fiction.  Normally I would just pass these up.  But I heard the buzz about these and finally reserved them at the library.  I'm so glad I did.  I was sad when I finished them because I just wanted the story to keep going. 

The characters are very real.  The story is very imaginative and futuristic. 

If you are fan of these, tell me what you thought about them.  Are you super excited about the movies?

Thursday, March 10, 2011

The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls.  I didn't have high expectations, a memoir by someone I've never heard of?  But I liked the title so I picked it up at the library. 

All I can say is WOW.  This is a story worth telling.  Jeannette Walls is a fantastic writer and storyteller.  There are no lulls to this book.  It is just super interesting the entire way through. 

I wanted to scream at her parents for being so selfish and self centered throughout, but you don't come away with hatred for them, you just feel utter disbelief.  The dad is an alcoholic, a dreamer, that's where the title comes from.  He's super smart but can't stay anywhere long enough or work long enough to make anything happen.  The mom is an educated teacher, but doesn't want to teach, she wants to do art, she wants to paint.  She can't be bothered with working and she can't be bothered with really taking care of anyone but herself. 

It starts when Jeannette is in NYC as an adult, seeing her homeless mom on the street and ignoring her.  She is living in a fancy apartment.  So at first I'm like, ok, why is your mom homeless?  Then she starts her story.  It starts when she is 3 and burns herself cooking hotdogs on the stove in a trailer.  Let the adventures begin.  They start in the desert southwest and end up in CA, Nevada, Missippi.  They have no possessions and when they get them, they leave them behind to move on to somewhere else.  When they have money, they eat steaks, when they don't the kids dig out of the trash at school for food.  It's really horrific at times what the kids have to go through, no running water, no heat or electricity.  But through it all is a story of the sibling bond, coping with selfish parents, living in dire conditions and living the nomadic life with minimalist parents who don't believe in food stamps or government assistance but are ok with letting their kids go hungry and without clothes or proper shelter.  The parents simply fend for themselves for the most part, the kids all sort of take care of each other, this bond will eventually help most of them overcome the odds. 

Anyway, READ this!  You won't regret it.  It stuck with me.  I appreciate good writing.  Jeannette Walls has a true gift!  This is a fascinating, unbelievable and incredible story.

My First Giveaway!

Do you like getting free stuff in the mail?  Here's your chance! 

365 TV-Free Activities You Can Do With Your Child by Steve and Ruth Bennett.

This is from my collection, not new, but I'm easy on books and we don't smoke, so it's clean.  I am moving so my junk is another person's treasure.  This book is actually pretty cool.  It has different activities, crafts, games, outdoor play, indoor play, recycled household material uses, science, creative, fantasy play.  LOTS of ideas! 

To enter, leave a comment about what your favorite things to do with your kids are.  I will choose the winner at the end of month using a random choice system.  Good Luck!

Cheesy Baked Pasta


















Meet Chef Maci, my 8 year old daughter.  She wants to be a baker when she grows up.  We are making an easy baked pasta dish.  I normally make this with Ziti or Penne, but I just had Macaroni on hand. 

Here's the recipe:

Cheesy Baked Pasta

1 lb of ground beef
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic powder or fresh garlic clove (2 cloves)
1 jar of spaghetti sauce

2 cups cottage cheese or ricotta
1 egg
1/2 cup parmesan cheese (grated or freshly grated)
1 tsp italian seasoning or oregano
1 tsp garlic powder

 8 oz. Mozzarella Cheese, slices or shredded


1 pound of pasta, cooked, drained.

Brown the meat, add salt, pepper, garlic powder.
Add the spaghetti sauce, simmer on low for 10-20 minutes.

Mix the cottage cheese, egg, parmesan cheese, italian seasoning and garlic powder, set aside.

Cook pasta, drain and rinse.

Use a 9 x 13 pan, ungreased, layer sauce, noodles, cheese mixture, keep layering until it's done, top with mozzarella cheese.  Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly. 

Serve with steamed brocoli and garlic toast.


Picture tutorial:

Gather all the ingredients
Brown the hamburger
Add the spices
Continue browning the hamburger
Add the spaghetti sauce to browned meat, simmer for 20 minutes or so.
In a bowl, add cottage cheese
grate the parmesan
about 1/2 cup
One egg
Spices
Combine cottage cheese and parmesan
Add spices
Add egg
Stir
Until well combined, set aside
Cook up some pasta
drain and rinse pasta
Start by layering some sauce, then add noodles, about 1/3 of each.
Add 1/3 of the cheese mixture
Spread the cheese mixture evenly
Another layer and then another.
Top with mozzarella cheese, slices or shredded.
Cover the entire top
Bake 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.  I wish you had smellavision, it smells so good in here!

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

The Oil Cleansing Method





Not too long ago I had heard about the oil cleansing method for the face.  I have been using a bar of soap to wash my face which is extremely drying, so I'd add a moisterizer after.  Anyway, I thought, the oil cleansing method sounded very interesting.  The premise is that oil dissolves oil.  So it sounds crazy but it really works!  I don't care what kind of skin you have you should try this.  There are different oils to use.  But basically the recommended oils are Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Castor Oil, and Sunflower Oil.  You can use any natural cold pressed vegetable oil.  The castor oil is found in the laxative section of your grocery store.  It has anti-inflammatory properties so it's great if you have acne prone skin. 

Here are suggested ratios of oil to use:

Oily Skin: Try a blend of 30% Castor Oil to 70% Sunflower Seed Oil.


Balanced Skin: Try a blend of 20% Castor Oil to 80% Sunflower Seed Oil.

Dry Skin: Try a blend of 10% Castor Oil to 90% Sunflower Seed Oil.

Here's how you do it:

  1. With dry face and hands, take a quarter sized amount of oil and rub in small circles around your face and neck.  Massage for a few minutes.
  2. Get a washcloth wet with really warm/hot water, so it's sort of steamy, but be careful not to burn yourself. 
  3. Apply the washcloth to your face and neck, let it stay there and let the steam work into your pores, a minute or two, this is great to do in the tub, lie back and relax.   
  4. Repeat steps 2 and 3.
  5. Wipe face with washcloth removing excess oil.  You will be amazed how clean your face feels!  Not greasy at all. 
I have super dry skin in the winter with an oily t-zone.  At first I was just using Extra Virgin Olive Oil, but added a little castor oil to the mix as suggested.   

Don't waste your money on expensive facial products, try this and you will see how awesome it is! 

For a full article on this go here:
 
oil cleanse method

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

The Help by Kathryn Stockett


The Help by Kathryn Stockett was a fantastic read!  I really enjoyed it.  The characters were engaging, the storyline was interesting.  It's about a maid Aibileen who works for white women, raises their kids (in the book she's raising her17th white child) in Mississippi 1962.  She is good enough to raise a white woman's child but not good enough to use their indoor toilet.  Skeeter is a white woman who was raised by a black maid.  One day her maid Constantine leaves with no explanation.  Skeeter misses her dearly because she was like her mother.  Her own mother won't tell her anything about what happened to her.  She just wants Skeeter to get married and live a traditional life as a wife/mother.  Skeeter wants something different.  She becomes a writer, she gets an advice column in the local paper for household chores.  She knows nothing about any of that because she grew up with maids who did all that.  So she goes to the obvious source for the advice column, a black maid, and this is how she becomes friends with Aibileen.  Aibileen and Skeeter become fast friends, each helping the other with strength and courage to do what is right and to help change the extreme racist beliefs of the time. 

I could not put this book down.  I laughed out loud and felt sad, scared, all the emotions the characters felt.  It really brought you to another world and I love books like this.

Monday, March 7, 2011

Homemade Laundry Detergent



I made my first batch of homemade laundry detergent back in December. I've been using it for over 3 months now. There are various recipes, but this is the only one I've tried. I LOVE it. I absolutely love it. For the soap, I used 1 bar of Zote and 1 bar of Fels Naptha. But you can also use Ivory apparently. Any soap that isn't too perfumey. Total cost to make 2 batches was less than $10. I have about 1/4 of a box left, so I'd say that lasted me 4 months for a family of 4. So roughly $2.00-2.50 a box or for me about $2 a month (I do a good amount of laundry). This isn't a scientific recipe, you can add a little more or less and experiment. I also think this is good for sensitive skin. It's very mild, has a light scent of the soap you choose.
I use this in my HE machine with no residue or issues. You only use 2 TBS of product, a little goes a long way! Keep an bar of Fels Naptha on hand for pretreating stains too, it's great stuff.

Powdered Laundry Detergent Recipe

  • 1 bar Fels Naptha Soap or Zote Soap (finely grated) (I have used both Zote and Fels Naptha with great results).  To grate the soap, you can use a cheese grater or a food processor, in tiny portions because it's very hard.
  • 1 cup Washing Soda (I found this at Fry's (a Kroger store) only, it was hard to find, but Ace Hardware might have it. It's super cheap, like $3 a box. 
  • 1 cup Borax
  1. Mix well and store in an old powdered detergent box or airtight container.
  2. Use 2 tablespoons per full load.

For different recipes, check out this website, they have liquid versions:


Recycle an old soap box and scoop

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Haan Slim and Light Floor Steamer


Haan Slim and Light Floor Steamer is wonderful.  I have this Floor Steamer.  I've had it since July 2010, so far so good.  I LOVE it.  I have never had cleaner floors.  They stay clean longer I think because there is no chemical residue to stick to dirt.  I only have to steam my floor every 2 weeks to keep it clean.  In between I sweep.  This is super easy to use too.  You just fill the water tank with filtered water (I use the water from my fridge dispenser).  Turn it on and wait for it to heat up. You have to sweep first, this does not have a vacuum on it. 

But seriously, I walk around barefoot all the time.  I used to have black feet from the dirt on my floor.  Now my feet aren't ever black on the bottom! 

The best prices I have seen on this is either QVC or Amazon, Amazon has a slightly higher price, but has free shipping.

Friday, March 4, 2011

Swagbucks

Let me tell you about Swagbucks. I LOVE Swagbucks. What is it?

Swagbucks is a portal for searching, shopping, games, surveys, etc. The goal is to accumulate swagbucks. 450 swagbucks will get you a $5 Amazon gift card. You can get other things but the Amazon gift cards are the best reward by far. I have accumulated $90 in Amazon Gift Cards since beginning this in November. I'm addicted.

So I'm promoting it shamelessly in hopes of getting your referral. Because each referral I get will get me more Swagbucks. I get my referral's search swagbucks each day.
Here's my referral link, or you will see a box on the side, just click on it. :)

http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/ldanowski@cox.net

All you do is sign up, what you do with it is up to you. I spend about 10 minutes on it in the morning, 10 minutes in the middle of the day and 10 minutes in the evening to get minimal swagbucks.

Here's how you get swagbucks:

Most of these are under the Earn key:

  • Do the daily poll, it gets you 1 swagbuck a day, but that's 30 each month!
  • Use the toolbar, this requires downloading it. It's a good thing because it reminds you to get Swagbucks! You get 1 swagbuck per day for using the toolbar.
  • Go through NOSO offers, skip and go to next offer and in the end just punch in the saying and you will get 2 Swagbucks.
  • Go to the Survey page: You will get 1 swagbuck. If you can get in on a survey, you can get 50-100 swagbucks, usually the surveys are about 10-30 minutes long and can be a little bit fun.
  • Do a search, I normally do 3 searches a day, you can plug in the word, pickle or poop, or do a serious search like Real Housewives of NJ. Just keep plugging into it and searching til you are rewarded with 7-11 or more swagbucks. Once you get rewarded you can't do it again for a few hours, that's why I do them every 3-4 hours or so.
  • Watch SBTV, you fill up the bar and you get 3 Swagbucks. This used to be worth 5 swagbucks and you could let it run while you did other things, now you have to actually watch the videos, but the videos are interesting and it fills up 10 percent each time you watch a video.
  • Do the Groupon, Social Living, Mamapedia, etc deals when they come up. They have some good ones like CVS, Barnes and Noble, Red Box. You do it through Swagbucks, you get the same deal, but you also get swagbucks, like 100 or more.
  • Do the Special Offers, at least look at them daily and see if there is anything free to do or a great deal that also rewards swagbucks.
  • Last but not least, look for codes, you will find them in the blog, on Facebook, on Twitter, on the Tool bar. There are many cheat sites to find these, but they frown upon using them.
Anyway, if you have any questions, I'd love to help you get started! This is in no way a scam! It's awesome! I was able to buy a bunch of stuff off Amazon recently and still have money on my account. I adore Amazon, books and all the stuff they have to offer. It's the perfect place to shop and free shipping if you spend $25 is awesome too.