Thursday, October 18, 2012
Thursday, October 4, 2012
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.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
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.
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.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
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
Friday, March 23, 2012
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
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
Friday, March 9, 2012
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.
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.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
mmmm.....Cupcake Week!
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