Perdue Oven Ready Products

As a bzzagent, I really wasn't sure about trying the Perdue Oven Ready Products because I am VERY picky about meat.  I actually raise chickens, so I thought I would be hard on this product...and I was.  First the good:  Having the chicken already cleaned, seasoned and in a bag was awesome.  No prep or icky chicken juice everywhere.  The chicken was juicy, tender and easy to serve.  I read about the Perdue brand and was happy with the "What We Believe" company standards.  Now the not so good:  The chicken was too expensive; I would not have paid that much for the convenience of prewashed.  After two full hours, I stuck my meat thermometer through the slit in the bag and it was well above the 180 degree mark, so I removed it from the oven.  The skin stuck to the bag and pulled away from the chicken.  I carved off some pieces and it had good seasoning and was juicy and tender. However, I thought it was stringy and almost fake or "pressed and formed" chicken tasting. I also noticed that near the bone it was not done all the way.  It is very difficult to test it while in the bag and I did cook it for longer than the recommended time because of this.   I give this product three stars out of five...very easy and a good idea, but I did not like the taste of the chicken.

Be Broke...Live Rich!

I love a bargain. I love a sale. I always use coupons. Here are a few things that I just have to tell you about:

Kindle: I actually don't even own a kindle. I have downloaded the FREE program on my computer and the FREE app for my iphone and, literally, EVERY SINGLE DAY there are FREE books at amazon.com for downloading. They are 100% FREE and change all the time. I have amassed a huge library of free books and it is so convenient! You can read the same book on both devices and it automatically syncs to where you left off. I love to read and hate wasting money on books that I end up not liking, so this is perfect for me!

Redbox: I don't watch many movies because I just don't have a lot of time. However, I LOVE the convenience of Redbox. I can always find movies that I want to watch and it's so fast and easy. What I love the most, though, is that if you sign up online for text messages, they send you a code for a free rental on the first Monday of each month. They never send me worthless text messages, just the ones for a free rental. They also do a lot of promotions with other products, such as getting free Redbox rentals inside specially marked boxes. How awesome is that!

CVS Bucks: This is how it works...you get a CVS card and earn CVS Bucks on everything you buy. PLUS you can earn them on the spot for certain items each week. This is free money to spend in their store. For example, I bought an over the counter medication last week that was on sale, plus I had a coupon, plus you earned $5 CVS Bucks. The cashier rang up my medication. I paid for it and $5 CVS Bucks printed out. I picked up 2 bags of Easter candy, on sale for 2/$6. The cashier rang up the candy, I handed her my $5 CVS Buck and paid the difference of $1 plus tax. Practically FREE candy!

Restaurant Deals: A local news station offers a weekly deal on restaurant gift certificates. Each week they feature a different restaurant and you can buy $50 worth of gift certificates for $25. This is a great deal. They have 200 to offer each week. Most of these sell out fairly quickly, but once in awhile they don't and they reduce the price of the leftover certificates. I have bought certificates for 5 different restaurants in the last year that were reduced to $10 for a $50 gift certificate. All of these restaurants have been in the Indianapolis area and we enjoyed each one of them. They were places we had never heard of and each time the $50 was enough for our two meals, drinks and dessert, plus an extra dessert (or in one case, several deli salads) to take home. The gift certificates were always mailed out quickly, the restaurants were always nice with very good food and we have never had any problems redeeming the certificates. What a deal!

I have also gotten some awesome deals on an online local radio auction. I bought 5 gift certificates for a restaurant that were for $20 each...I bought them for $2.99 each when the auction had a 'fire sale' a week after the original auction.

Last, but not least, I have signed up for text message alerts with fast food restaurants and receive text messages for free food periodically. I have received several text messages for free food from DQ and a local taco joint.

Coupon Websites: There are tons of coupon blogs and websites that specialize in printable coupons. I always check these websites before going grocery shopping, but did you know there are tons of printable RETAIL coupons readily available? On a recent trip to the mall, with a quick advanced search, I headed out with coupons for Bath and Body Works, Carsons, Kohls, Maurices, ULTA and Victoria's Secret.

I'm Flipping Out Over Covergirl Blastflipsticks!

As a bzzagent, I was SOOO excited when I received three full size Covergirl blastflipsticks to try!  I wore the Vixen shade and took the Stunner and Minx shades to work with me. My co-workers were super jealous when they saw them.  I gave my boss the Minx one because those are the colors that she loves!  I loved the feel of the blastflipsticks....nice and smooth, not waxy or gummy at all.  They had no smell or weird taste.  I loved the way you could layer them and mix and match them.  I really, really liked this product.  When I handed out all of the coupons, I showed around the booklet with all of the different shade duos and everyone was really impressed with the selection.  I know most of the women were heading out to get some for themselves and for stocking stuffers...as a matter of fact, by the time lunch was over, I already saw some on their desks!

PS Sealed the Deal on my Thanksgiving Meal :)

As a Bzzagent, I received two Private Selection items and coupons for three additional free items to pick up in the store in the mail and couldn't wait to try them out.  The first thing I want to say is that I thought that Private Selection was just like "Kroger Brand." It is, but SO MUCH MORE!! The first item I bought was the Jalapeno Stuffed Green Olives.  I planned to use them in one of my holiday recipes, but they were so good that we ate them straight out of the jar.  I also got a jar of Private Selection Marinara Hearty Traditional Sauce.  I picked up a box of Private Selection pasta and made a delicious meal.  The sauce had a great taste and texture and the pasta was as good as any name brand pasta.  Instead of my normal garlic bread side dish, I toasted some sandwiches with the Private Selection Garlic & Herb Monterey Jack Cheese Slices...yum!  I had some cheese slices left over so I made a little snack the next day by using a small biscuit cutter and cutting the slices into circles and serving it on the Private Selection Classic Water Crisps.  The crackers had 60 calories in 4 crackers, which I thought was a little high for a cracker with very little flavor.  They were very crispy, in fact they were so crispy that I had trouble not getting them to break in half before I could even serve them.  Thanksgiving morning I brewed up my Private Selection Costa Rican Tarrazu coffee.  It is a medium-dark blend and I felt it was a little strong for breakfast, but delicous later in the evening to warm up around the fire. Because of this bzzagent campaign, it really drew my attention to the Private Selection brands around the store.  I now know that this is a Kroger brand, but the more gourmet/upscale items.  I saw a lot of items that I'm going to try and was a little stingy with my 20% off coupons!  However, I do have to say that I felt that these products were a little pricey.  Although delicious, I would not have paid that much for the olives or the pasta sauce.

Alexia Foods Earns and A+

As a bzzagent, I was recently given the opportunity to try some great products from Alexia Foods.  First of all, my local Kroger store recently moved the Alexia Foods to the "natural" section of the store.  I spent several minutes browsing the regular freezer section of my store looking for the Alexia Brand.  There was an employee stocking the freezer section, so I asked him if they still carried them and he said no.  I was really disappointed, but finished my shopping.  Right before checking out, on a whim I decided to try the "natural foods" small freezer located on the other side of store.  Sure enough, there were three varieties of potato products.  I picked the Sweet Potato Julienne Fries and Yukon Gold Julienne Fries w/Sea Salt.  I tried the Sweet Potato Fries first and they were delicious.  I thought I didn't like sweet potatoes, but I was wrong!!  I baked these following the exact instructions on the package and I felt like they weren't quite crispy enough.  I put them back in the oven for about 5 more minutes and then they were perfect!  They had a really great flavor and I have already bought another bag and eaten them as a late night snack.  The Yukon Gold Julienne Fries w/Sea Salt were also very good.  They were a good texture and a good taste, but didn't really seem like anything special.  I also had a coupon for an Alexia Foods bread product and after visiting three different grocery chains, I have still not found one bread product.  I have only found fries, none of the other potatoes or side dishes.  This product is good and reasonably priced and I hope that I will eventually be able to try some of the other varieties.

October is Fair Trade Month

Green Mountain Coffee

As a bzzAgent, I was recently provided with sample K-cups of Green Mountain Fair Trade Certified Coffee.  I was really excited to try the coffee, but I was even more interested in the "Fair Trade Certified" information. First things first, I settled down with a cup of the Wild Mountain Blueberry.  TAAAASTY!  This coffee was nice and smooth, not too strong and had a nice blueberry undertone.  While enjoying my cup, I thought, "What is Fair Trade Certified"?  This is what I learned.  Fair trade helps farmers get a fair price for their beans and improves working conditions.  It also supports community development with projects that result in new schools, roads, health clinics and safe drinking water.  REALLY?!?!?  I can help with all of this just buy doing something I already do everyday....drink a cup of coffee?!?!?!  Count me in!  I was provided with three other varieties to try.  I really enjoyed the Colombian Fair Trade Select and also the Vermont Country Blend.  The Sumatran Reserve Extra Bold was too strong for me, but it was still very good if you like your coffee strong.  I would not consider myself a coffee connoisseur, so I don't know that this coffee stood out as being "something I can't live without".  However, I enjoyed it immensely and I will be buying it again because it made me feel good and socially responsible to drink it...and who doesn't love that feeling?

Smartfood Selects

As a BzzAgent, I recently received three free samples of Smartfood Selects in exchange for my opinion. I couldn't wait to dig into the full size bag of Cinnamon Brown Sugar Popcorn and it was delish!  I'm not normally a fan of pre-popped and bagged popcorn, but this was very fresh and light.  The bag was high quality and had a really sturdy resealable feature that I appreciated because this bag lasted through several snackings!  When I first opened the bag, the cinnamon smell was really overpowering, but I was pleasantly surprised when I tasted it.  It was a perfect flavor combination of cinnamon and sugar on nice, crisp popcorn.  The other two bags were the popped hummus chips.  The first, Garlic Tomato Basil, was my favorite and one of the best chips I've ever had.  The flavor was strong, but not too strong. In other words, I could taste all of the flavors, but none overpowered the other.  These were thicker than most popped chips I've tried in the past and I will definitely purchase these in a full size bag.  The small bag was 100 calories and worth every one of them!  The other variety was Feta Herb.  I have to admit that this flavor did not appeal to me so I gave it to my husband.  He thought the flavor was good, but the chips were too thick.  I finally agreed to try one and I have to admit that they were pretty tasty.  If you are picky about healthy food (like I am), I think these Smartfood products would be worth trying.  I loved them and would feel "Smart" choosing these as a healthy snack.

Aren't You "Glade" It's Fall!!

As a BzzAgent, I recently received free samples in exchange for my opinion on a couple of new products from Glade.  I tried the Fuji Apple & Cardamom Spice Fragrance Mist and the Fuji Apple & Cardamom Spice Oil Diffuser.  Fall is my favorite time of year so I was happy to see this wonderful scent and broke them out as I was decorating my home with fall decorations.  First, the Fragrance Mist.  I have to admit that I had not seen these previously and didn't look at it very closely when I picked it.  So I got home and was surprised to see that it is basically a can of spray, but with a decorative plastic holder so the ugly can is not visible.  I thought it would do something...you know, insert batteries and spray every fifteen minutes or so.  It doesn't.  You just pick it up and spray it when you need it.  It smells good and I like the idea of the can blending in with the surroundings, however, I never really kept the can sitting around anyway.  I always kept it in a cabinet, drawer or basket.  After thinking about it, though, I scoped out where my family and friends kept their cans.  All of them were in plain view (backs of toilets, etc).  All in all, after I got that this might be exactly what some people are looking for to keep their cans on the down low, I really kind of liked it.  The smell is not as artificial as some of the air fragrances I have tried in the past and it really does make the air smell nice.  A lot comes out when you spray it and I don't really like when spray comes down onto the toilet, floor, walls, etc...but not sure how that could be changed.
The other product, the Fuji Apple & Cardamom Spice Oil Diffuser is also very nice.  This is basically a piece of a felt like material that absorbs the oil from the bottom and then scents the air around it.  This diffuser came with the off white plastic holder, which is prettier than the standard room air fresheners that you can buy, but it doesn't exactly blend into my country home. I like that it doesn't require electricity and the smell is quite nice.  I smelled it quite a bit the first couple of days, but not so much now.  I have a big country home so no room air freshener is going to be really noticeable.  I prefer candles or melts/warmers to permeate through the entire home and are somewhat strong.  This had enough scent that I noticed it in the room it was in and a whiff every now and then in an adjoining room.  Glade has nice scents to pick from, but for these two particular products, there were only a few options and only one that was good for fall.  I would buy the oil diffuser refill and continue to use this product.  I would probably move it to a smaller room, though, like the bathroom or bedroom.

What I'm Loving Right Now...

*summer dresses
*my convertible
*Naomi's Candies (chocolate covered Twinkies, need I say more?)
*outside dining
*spring cleaning (not necessarily the cleaning, but the results!)
*watching my garden grow
*fun nail polish
*yard sales
*planning (dreaming) for the future
*shorts and flip-flops
*natural exercise (gardening, bike riding, painting)
*open windows
*fresh fruit

Garage $ale $eason is Here!

Spring has sprung and that means GARAGE SALE SEASON IS HERE!  I love the thrill of finding a great deal at a garage sale.  Clothes, home decor, books, kitchen gadgets....I love it all!  I REALLY love going to the small towns where they have town wide garage sales.  I have searched high and low for a calendar of Indiana town wide garage sales (mostly central and northern Indiana), but have not been able to find one, so I have been working on my own for the past couple of years.  If you know of any that I have missed, please let me know!

2012
April 20-21          Wakarusa Maple Syrup Festival (and tons of garage sales)
April 27-28          Culver (Spring)
April 28:              South Whitley

May 5                  Bluffton; Somerset
May 11-12           Shipshewana/Topeka
May 19                Akron; Roanoke; Walton

June 1-2              Swayzee; Mentone; New Paris
June 7-9              Amboy
June 15-16          Silver Lake; LaFountaine; Sweetser
June 22               Bunker Hill
June 23               RoAnn

July 7                 Mexico
July 21               Camden, Winamac
July 28               Galveston
Aug 3-4             North Manchester; Converse
Aug 22-25         Portland
Aug 24-25         Rossville
Aug 31-Sept 3   Plymouth; Upland

Sept 13-15        Nappanee
Sept 14-15        Frankton
Sept 15             Brookston
Sept 22-23        Atlanta
Sept 22             Burnettsville
Sept 28-29       Culver (Fall)

Oct 6                Flora

If it's free....it's for me!

I love a bargain.  I love a sale.  I always use coupons. Here are a few things that I just have to tell you about:

Kindle:  I actually don't even own a kindle.  I have downloaded the FREE program on my computer and the FREE app for my iphone and, literally, EVERY SINGLE DAY there are FREE books at amazon.com for downloading.  They are 100% FREE and change all the time.  I have amassed a huge library of free books and it is so convenient!  You can read the same book on both devices and it automatically syncs to where you left off.  I love to read and hate wasting money on books that I end up not liking, so this is perfect for me!

Redbox:  I don't watch many movies because I just don't have a lot of time.  However, I LOVE the convenience of Redbox.  I can always find movies that I want to watch and it's so fast and easy.  What I love the most, though, is that if you sign up online for text messages, they send you a code for a free rental on the first Monday of each month.  They never send me worthless text messages, just the ones for a free rental. They also do a lot of promotions with other products, such as getting free Redbox rentals inside specially marked boxes.  How awesome is that!

CVS Bucks:  This is how it works...you get a CVS card and earn CVS Bucks on everything you buy. PLUS you can earn them on the spot for certain items each week.  This is free money to spend in their store.  For example, I bought an over the counter medication last week that was on sale, plus I had a coupon, plus you earned $5 CVS Bucks.  The cashier rang up my medication.  I paid for it and $5 CVS Bucks printed out.  I picked up 2 bags of Easter candy, on sale for 2/$6.  The cashier rang up the candy, I handed her my $5 CVS Buck and paid the difference of $1 plus tax.  Practically FREE candy!

Restaurant Deals:  A local news station offers a weekly deal on restaurant gift certificates.  Each week they feature a different restaurant and you can buy $50 worth of gift certificates for $25.  This is a great deal.  They have 200 to offer each week.  Most of these sell out fairly quickly, but once in awhile they don't and they reduce the price of the leftover certificates.  I have bought certificates for 5 different restaurants in the last year that were reduced to $10 for a $50 gift certificate.  All of these restaurants have been in the Indianapolis area and we enjoyed each one of them.  They were places we had never heard of and each time the $50 was enough for our two meals, drinks and dessert, plus an extra dessert (or in one case, several deli salads) to take home.  The gift certificates were always mailed out quickly, the restaurants were always nice with very good food and we have never had any problems redeeming the certificates.  What a deal!

I have also gotten some awesome deals on an online local radio auction.  I bought 5 gift certificates for a restaurant in Kokomo that were for $20 each...I bought them for $2.99 each when the auction had a 'fire sale' a week after the original auction.

Last, but not least, I have signed up for text message alerts with fast food restaurants and receive text messages for free food periodically.  I have received several text messages for free food from DQ and a local taco joint.

Coupon Websites:  There are tons of coupon blogs and websites that specialize in printable coupons.  I always check these websites before going grocery shopping, but did you know there are tons of printable RETAIL coupons readily available?  On a recent trip to the mall, with a quick advanced search, I headed out with coupons for Bath and Body Works, Carsons, Kohls, Maurices, ULTA and Victoria's Secret.

mmmm.....Cupcake Week!

I LOVE cupcakes!  I recently stumbled upon this great bakery/chocolate shop in Kokomo.  It's called J Edwards Fine Chocolates.  Their chocolates are wonderful (including the HUGE chocolate covered strawberries) and they have many other unique gift items, but I was thrilled to find that they bake unbelievably delicious cakes that you can purchase whole or by the slice.  However, the first week of the month, they make all of their delicious cakes into CUPCAKES!!  These are to die for! All of their flavors during cupcake week are 'while they last' and believe me, they are worth the effort of getting there early.  This week I indulged in Chocolate Mousse Heaven, Peanut Butter and Harvey Wallbanger.  I usually get the Banana Split cupcake, but, sadly, I didn't get there early enough this time.  You can check them out at http://jedwardschocolates.blogspot.com or on their facebook page.

My Heart Aches

So sad.  Friday evening, Indiana, along with numerous other states, was heavily hit with tornadoes.  First, let me say, tornadoes, well, storms in general, are one of my greatest fears.  I have been known to reschedule things at the HINT of storms in the forecast.  The devastation caused by these storms is mind boggling.  My thoughts and prayers go out to those affected. 

I have struggled with a lot of "fears," lately.  The fear of getting older, the fear of being lonely, the fear of life going too fast and fearing my own mortality.  Because of these fears, I have learned a lot about myself during the past year.  I  now have a much stronger faith than in the past.  I have finally, truly, come to realize that putting it all in God's hands is the only way!  I understand that I cannot control, predict or change the actions of others, but I CAN change the way I react to their actions.  I also know that I am stronger than I thought I was....maybe stronger than I've ever been in my life.  My attitude about growing older has changed and I'm excited about the future and to see what it holds for me.  I know God has great blessings in store for me and I'm ready for them.  I love my life...God is good!

I is for Imax!

This weekend we went to the IMAX Theater in Indianapolis for the first time.  It. Was. Awesome.  The whole trip was very last minute.  Since the passing of Major, (our beautiful boxer) a couple of weeks ago, I have had some very sad moments.  While working outside this Sunday afternoon, Erick looked at me and said "I can see in your eyes that you're having a rough day.  Let's go do something fun."  So, off we went.  The IMAX is located downtown Indianapolis inside the Indiana State Museum.  Unfortunately, we arrived after museum hours, so we were unable to visit the exhibits, but we will definitely be going back to check it out at a later date.  We went to see Rescue 3D which is only 45 minutes long, but really interesting.  We were able to get fantastic seats and it was even better than we expected.  If you like this kind of movie, I highly recommend it.  Also, you can get a coupon here for buy one adult ticket, get one free.  Check out their website here for the other movies that are showing and show times.  The Indiana State Museum has an underground parking garage (be sure to get your parking validated at the box office!) and tons of other attractions right nearby. Enjoy!