Rethink the traditional heart shaped Russell Stover’s box.
Chocolate dipped potato chips – 4 ounces melted semi-sweet chocolate; partially dip ridged potato chips into melted chocolate, place on a parchment paper covered tray and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Variations: sprinkle red and white sprinkles on chocolate before refrigerating or use white chocolate or even peanut butter chips instead of chocolate
Marshmallow fudge - 12 ounces chopped semi-sweet chocolate, 2 14 ounce cans of sweetened condensed milk and 1 1/2 cups of marshmallows; heat the milk and pour over the chocolate until melted, stir in the marshmallows and pour into a parchment lined 8 inch square baking dish, refrigerate about 12 hours and cut into squares.
This is amazing and the price unbelievable! Dishwasher safe and freezable Vapur has designed the first completely flexible, foldable, reusable water bottle! Available in 3 colors, this 16 ounce, sport cap spouted bottle can be folded small enough to fit into a pocket, briefcase or purse for convenient carrying before or after water consumption. At $8.95 for one or $29.95 for 4, this is an amazing product my family will be thrilled to own!
Moderation is my mantra. How many times have we heard coffee is bad for you, chocolate is fattening, butter is evil….
Studies continually prove that in moderation, many of our older abstinence items are really actually good for us. For example:
Alcohol: Resveratrol in red wine is a powerful antioxidant, regulates blood sugar and increases heart health. 12 ounces of beer per day provides healthful benefits – Adults who drink in moderation show lower risk of diabetes, heart disease, and an increase of life span. One drink per day for women and no more than two for men is recommended.
Chocolate: Anyone who has seen Down with Love can agree with Renee Zellweger’s character: Chocolate is a best friend. In addition, an ounce of dark chocolate each day is good for you and I don’t care how or why, just hand it over.
Sodium: It’s everywhere: sodium-free, low sodium, no sodium. While an unhealthy amount of sodium can contribute to many health issues, too little can cause fatigue, nausea, cramps and cognitive problems. In general however, our processed and fast foods contain nearly double the recommended amount of sodium. Opt instead for increasing flavor in foods through herbs like Basil, Paprika, Tarragon. On another note, too much sodium clogs the kidneys which causes an increase in blood pressure. Dementia is caused by too much pressure in the brain caused by swollen blood vessels which basically suffocate brain cells. Drinking plenty of water flushes the kidneys of this overdose of sodium.
Caffeine: Moderate use of caffeine is useful for decreasing type 2 diabetes, possibly preventing Alzheimer’s and leads to a better defense against certain types of cancer. Caffeine may offer protection against sun damage, though of course too much can cause cysts, migraines and sleep issues (no kidding?).
Potatoes: Typically growled at for being a “carb,” potatoes actually are a good source of vital nutrients including those which protect against colon cancer. A medium potato provides 27 percent of the daily recommended intake of vitamin C, as well as providing B6, fiber and niacin. Cooking and then allowing the potato to cool (then reheating) increases the nutrient value of the potato.
Butter: Yes, butter is a “fat.” However, margarine is made of hydrogenated oils which is made of a chemical reaction which occurs when hydrogen is added to the vegetable oils. Hydrogenation creates saturated and trans fats which have been proven to heavily increase cardiovascular disease among others. Also, hydrogen fusion … the atomic bomb. Need I continue?
Exercise: 30 minutes of a heart-rate increasing brisk walk three times a week is as beneficial as hours of gym sessions. Use half your lunch hour to walk around the office park, or bundle up to walk Fido and you’ll save yourself the monthly membership fees.
Cell Phones: Using a headset or earpiece for calls over 2 minutes cuts radio-frequency waves by 1,000 times. When you have a weak signal, your body actually is subjected to an even higher dose of these waves as the phone attempts to boost its signal for a connection.
Sun Exposure: Everywhere you look now, SPF and sun protection are plastered. But sunlight helps your body produce vitamin D, which is nearly if not more important than vitamin C for prevention of cold-season sickness. Obviously baking oneself during the summer in eight hour sessions of full exposure on the beach is not recommended!
We could go on, but you get the idea.
COOL! That’s what I said! Who doesn’t love the idea of another BPA-free baby bottle that doesn’t break every time a toddler decides to retest gravity?
They’re not bad price-wise either ($13 – $16 each)! And popular brand nipples (Avent, Born Free, Dr. Brown’s, etc.) fit on them, another bonus. Available in a 5 ounce and 11 ounce infant and 11 ounce toddler sizes, these lifetime warranty bottles come in a variety of colors and weigh 5.5 ounces.
AND THEY DON’T BREAK!
I got a kick out of this idea and thought it was the perfect addition to a cocktail party, girls night, or just plain cheer-up fun. A silicone ice cube tray with 6 different gem-shaped molds. Try making them out of frozen juice concentrate for a rich color or just out of water for “diamonds.” On a totally different note, the same site offers ice cube molds in skull ‘n’ crossbones…. M’thinks that would be a fun idea for the son’s birthday party?
The best: CouponCabin – gives you the online coupon codes available for a site. I just got 5% off my order with 1-800-PetMeds.
Another is RetailMeNot – tons of coupons and sales listed in a very easy to maneuver manner
BeatThat helps you find the lowest price by allowing other bargain hunters to help you narrow down to the lowest price out there
I’m a sucker for cute doors and entryways and porches and stoops…anything that inspires a bit of whim or mystery is right up my alley. These caught my eye in a magazine. A skeleton key doorknocker…. Fairy tale house numbers…. A striped weather-resistant handwoven rug…. And then for that perfect chair in the entryway – a throw pillow with a custom image of your home printed on it!
