This Candle Is Making Me Hungry

Who knew a candle could make me crave a candy I don't even like?

Sugar Creek Candles come in all kinds of scents and colors. Last week I received a purple one called Jelly Bean. It is a purple candle inside a thick glass container with a lid. Upon opening the lid you immediately smell the sweet aroma but it isn't a gross, overly fake, sweet smell. It is pleasant and enticing which probably has something to do with the wild cherry, ripe peach and tangy strawberry with a hints of cinnamon and cherry with undertones of vanilla and musk. It is the perfect combination.

Ever since my Handsome was a toddler I always buy soy candles because they produce no soot. I remember seeing Handsome after a party. There was a candle above the TV burning and when I finally picked him up to change him for the night I noticed black around his nose area. He had been very interested in the candle all night and stayed below the TV trying to see it. I was shocked. I didn't know candle burning released so much carbon. It was the last time I burned  candle that wasn't vegetable based. Soy also lasts way longer than paraffin candles.

Goddess tells me this is the best candle she has ever smelled and asked that when not burning we keep it in her room by her bed so she can smell it when she goes to sleep and wakes up.

I can't wait to try their other scents. We are definitely new fans.

There are so many scents to choose from. Check out Sugar Creek Candles the next time you are searching for candles.

Our World Is Pretty White

This is the only photo I got of the storm on Saturday.  A few years ago I would have taken about 20 photos of the snow and then another 100 of the kids playing in it. They were out in it but I didn't go. I now find it sad how my life has changed over the past 4 years. One life changing moment that didn't break me but definitely bent me has altered my everything and sometimes just doing the norm and not sobbing anymore takes all my energy.

Did you have snow where you are this past weekend? We ended up with about a foot and a half.

 

V.C. Andrews My Sweet Audrina

\

The 411: 

I am midway done with My Sweet Audrina and it is everything a VC Andrews book should be. Audrina was written in the 80s by V.C. Andrews is was not a sage series as her other books but stands alone. Audrina lives in the shadow of a sister she doesn't know. The first and better Audrina according to Audrina. Her father makes her rock in her dead sister's rocking chair to hopefully get all the gifts the first Audrina possessed. It is a lot for a little girl with a bad memory to deal with especially when you don't know your real age, never celebrate birthdays, never attend school, have friends, live with a cousin who makes life more miserable and parents who argue and fight.  Audrina is never to go into the wood alas she meet with the mystery fate of her sister Audrina.

This is a great read. I read it many, many moons ago and I am so excited it was made into a Lifetime movie.

\

Yes My Heart Is Blue But It Is Stunning

Reviewing products is what takes up most of my week. I have friends who love checking out my reviews and others who are dying to learn how to do this too. It is not something to go into lightly and it does take time to get products worth reviewing.

When you are a product reviewer there are many steps to getting the products and crossing them off your To Do List.

• There is a ton of emails to get through.
• Make sure the product came in.
• Break the box down and get it ready for recycling.
• Take photos of it before I open it.
• Use the product.
• Show my friends and ask them what they think about the product
• Take more photos or even do a video.
• Research the product
• Write about the product
• Post the product in numerous sites Amazon, Blog, Facebook, Twitter, and other places.
• Send the links over to the company that sent me the product and make sure they received they email.

Sometimes it is fast and other times a grueling task that seems to never end. I love when I can cross a product of my To Do List that is always being updated and hangs in front of my face.

This review is something that was far from grueling. It is gorgeous and I can't stop taking photos.

Isn't it stunning?!

I love wearing it and everyone who sees it loves it too!

To Order one for yourself, visit the link below. I know there is a red heart in the photo but this is for the blue heart. I promise. It is the link I used to order and if you check the description you will note the blue details.

No More Messy Microwave With Angry Mama In The House

The Kitchen Gizmo Angry Mama Microwave Cleaner is not only cute but gets the job done.
Remove the hair of this little mama and pour distilled white vinegar into the body up to the fill line (It's there. No guessing needed).

Pour water up to the fill line on the back of the head. (No guessing here either)
Replace her hair which has holes at the top for the steam generated by the water and vinegar to escape.

Place her in your microwave for 5-7 minutes. (We did 6)

After about 2 minutes, the water and vinegar heats up enough to generate steam. It is the steam that will loosen up all the microwave mess. No scrubbing or harsh chemicals.

It is definitely and adorable addition to my kitchen and she is so cute you can't NOT use her. I want her to stand in the microwave all the time with her cute mean face hoping she stops everyone from leaving spills.

The Pretty Cherry Pitter

The Kitchen Gizmo Cherry Pitter removes the cherry pit with one little push, saves the pits in the bottom of the pitter for easy disposal.

We love cherries in this house as does our guinea pig. Removing a cherry pit is a pain and having to bite around it means messy hands and juice down the face.

• Place cherries in the cherry basin (which you have to easily put onto the pitter when you first take it out of the box. You can drop about 10 cherries at a time into this basin.
• Automatically because of the slope design, a cherry will place itself on the pitter well with the cross shaped plunger overhead. It doesn't even matter what part of the cherry the plunger hits so you need to rotate the cherry.
• Hit the plunger with your hand until it is totally down and you will see the pit fall right into the pit well.
• Your cherry is ready for eating.

You can easily and quickly de-pit a bunch of cherries in a few seconds.

We use a small plate right next to the pitter to catch all the cherries that have been de-pitted.

When you are done, remove the black bottom and dump your pits.

Wish I had room to keep this on my counter because it not only works great but looks amazing.

My Life Organization Has Started for 2016 With A Single Hamper

This fold-able laundry hamper may spend very little time closed up as I always have laundry but I love the fact that it can completely close if I needed it to. It comes completely folded down and secured with a snap that allows the handles to be the closure.

Even though it is flexible and lightweight it is still very sturdy. My favorite feature is that the handles make carrying it down to the laundry room very easy.

The description says it holds three loads, I can tell you it holds 2 large loads however if you are doing towels and and a comforter, probably one.

The hardest part is getting my kids to stop playing with it.

Just Finished Between A Vamp And A Hard Place By Jessica Sims

The 411:

Well, this was a great way to end 2015 and start a new year. Vampire love never grows old in my eyes and there is no pun intended. I LOVE IT!

Lindsey and her partner/friend Gemma head over to Italy to hopefully grab some amazing antiques. Lindsey isn't sure this will be worth the trip, time or expense until she stumbles upon a secret room downstairs that is stocked full of amazing pieces that will undoubtedly make everything quite worth this trip including a coffin that contains a very very old vampire who wants to find out who staked him. Lindsey didn't plan on becoming a food source, traipsing all over Venice or falling for a vampire but since meeting Rand, her life will never be the same. 

I really really enjoyed the first part of the book with Gemma and Lindsey. I thoroughly enjoyed Rand trying to wrap his head around all the modern day things like showers, clean hair, door knobs and cell phones to name a few. My absolute favorite character is Gemma who thankfully was included in the traipsing thanks to text messaging. All in all a fun book I will be looking for more Jessica Sims books.

Coffee—The Gift That Keeps On Giving!

This holiday season I must have gone through 40 K-Cups and brewed about 18 pots of French Press Coffee!  Even if we aren't entertaining we go through a lot of coffee. I love bringing a thermos to work too so that I can save on all the trips to the convenient store along with my co-workers on our 4th cup during the 7 hour work day. Buying coffee out can be really expensive and I don't understand people who spend over $10 a day on coffee when out. That equates to $50 a week and $200 in a month. Save that over the year and you have a nice little vacation fund of $2,400.00. This is why I love making coffee at home BUT if I am going to make it at home I want the selection I would get if I were to purchase it outside the house.
 

The day before Christmas I received a large box of coffee and my new favorite cup to try out.  So far I can tell you I love the Marseilles best which is a medium dark with the Aztec Roast coming in a close second.  My husband loves the Aztec Roast best probably due to it's medium to full body flavors of dark cocoa, plum, and tobacco. The finish is sweet and toasty.

 

Oh yeah...and they don't only have coffee, they also have teas and creamers. So before you spend another cent at a convenience store. Visit Royal Cup and H.C. Valentine!

Tic Stac Toe Is Way More Challenging Then Tic Tac Toe

TIC STAC TOE is the refreshing reinvention of tic-tac-toe that takes the concept and revolutionizes it by expanding the board to four in a row and adding a third dimension to the game play.  The result is a game that is familiar and simple, but quickly escalates into an intense match of wits demanding focus and careful planning as the pieces stack up.

Just when you thought you had Tic Tac Toe all figured out Tic Stac Toe changes everything. My daughter and I have played at least 3 games a day for the past week and love it!!!!! My 25 year old niece visited from California and loved it. She was playing my 10 year old daughter and kept telling me, "this is harder then it looks" because my daughter was kicking her butt. I think it's because it is no longer three in a row it is four and you can go up, across, diagonal, vertical, horizontal and because you are going up you sometimes don't realize how many ways the other person can win until it is too late. You seriously need to be on your game. 

Who knew Tic Tac Toe could be such a challenge? 

TIC STAC TOE has won The Creative Child Award, The Tillywig Toy Award, The Parents' Choice Award and the hearts and minds of millions!  It is available at Toys-R-Us, Walmart and other fine retailers.

She always wants to build a tower after our last game.

With over 75 ways to win there will no longer be any tie games!

My Babies Were Santa's Little Helpers This Christmas And Most Days

My kids and my second daughter (Goddess' best friend) are such good kids.They participate in so many ways that they don't even realize.

We send all their stuffed animals they no longer want to a children's home every year. They bag up their clothes that they have grown out of and give it to friends who could use it. I personally love this because sometimes I get to see their clothes on the kids in photos and it makes me so happy.

Around Christmas time we do a little more. They always say Merry Christmas to strangers at the supermarket, diner, or on the sidewalk around the holidays. This was started by my son about four years ago. I loved that he did it when we were leaving the supermarket one day. I thought...wow that is something I used to do now with the kids I am distracted and busy so I forget. Ever since that day we do it. It think it is so special that my son thought enough to do this. Now we talk about the fact that not everyone has family or special people to be with during the holidays so we try to be extra nice to others especially around this time of year. This year I asked my daughter to make a list of some things she wanted to do.

The kids also love picking angels off the tree at the post office. My kids have been angels in the past (we all have hard times) and it is something I did before the kids and something I love doing with them. They enjoy picking things out for the kids they choose off the tree.

We always deliver at least three bags to the food pantry during this time of year. We have used the food pantry in the past and I love that I can give back.

This year my son and I headed into town with a few boxes of gifts for a children's party that was happening at a church. It was all new things and it is one of the ways I can give back as a blogger. If I receive things they kids will not use, or win a blogger giveaway I keep the items in a box and hold them until Christmas time. We never had as much as we did this year. The three big boxes were of course happily accepted at the Children's Party. It is a great cause. The children from a special program in the surrounding towns get to attend a party where they will have breakfast with Santa, get gifts, do crafts, bake a cookie, and shop and wrap for their family members. I was able to donate a lot of toys, phone cases, books, DVDs and headphones this year. It makes me feel good knowing that while I can't support these causes monetarily I can donate the things I receive thanks to my blog.  I think my children are seeing what my parents showed me and my sisters. We didn't always have everything we wanted but we had everything we needed. My parents were big donators and volunteers. My sisters and I do the same. Hopefully my kids carry it on and pass this onto their kids too. We all  have to help each other because you never know when you may need help too.

We hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas. We will talk to you soon!

Time For Some Wine!!!!

Moscato is my favorite wine so that is the one I will be opening on Christmas Eve saving the red for dinner with family on Christmas Day. 

So far, 3 homes have been award and if you head over to the Heroicred website you can see how many bottles have sold and how many more need to be sold for another home. 

Favorite Book Of The Year For Me Was Once Upon A Zombie

The 411:

From the first few pages I was completely engrossed in this story. It is Alice in Wonderland meets Edward Scissor Hands, Meets, The Walking Dead! I LOVED every moment of it and wish I could give a book to everyone I know.

This mashup story has all your favorites from Sleepy Beauty, Snow White,  Peter Pan, Jack from Jack and the Beanstalk, The Big Bad Wolf, Rapunzel, The Frog Prince, literally everyone is showing up in this page turner.

There have been zombie sightings all over the world as Caitlin and her little sister Natalie move to their new home in London with their Dad. Things suddenly change for Caitlin when she receives a note from her new school friend Jack to meet at a cemetery. However it was NOT Jack who sent it to her.  Caitlin ends up on the cemetery where Lewis Carroll is buried. A book lover she is of course in awe until her little sister shows up followed by a hand rising up from the ground. A bone white, pretty, long nailed, girl hand that belongs to a girl with very, very long hair who quickly explains that certain buried "story tellers" are actually gateways into wormholes that bridge that allows for space/time continuum. 

Natalie is obviously more adventurous and starts sliding down the dead girls long locks into the gaping pit the girl had just come out of. Caitlin follows her and the world they know will never be the same.

I loved all the literary tie ins and the pop culture additions. It was a fun, fun read that I can't wait to read again only this time with my daughter.

It is a great book for ages 10+

AND...I only just noticed as I was grabbing the link to the book's website that there are dolls!!!! Hello...I  had no idea! This would have been a great Christmas gift for my daughter. There is still time!!!