Keeping Our Homework Pencils Sharp

School has been in session for almost two full months. We sit and do homework every single night. It's a blast. Yeah...no...it is awful and there are sometimes tears. Right before the tears there is the sound of a pencil breaking because someone has decided it was too hard, they are too tired or whatever other excuse I sometimes hear when someone (Goddess) doesn't want to do homework.

We go through a ton of pencils and my wrist was starting to hurt from all the turning I have to do to re-sharped the pencil that was perfectly fine before we started homework (10 seconds earlier) UGH!

This sharpener has gotten quite a bit of use over the past two days.

You can put 4 AA batteries in it but I choose to charge through USB plug (included). You can also plug it in if you want because it does come with a plug too.

My favorite feature is that you can set the sharpness of your pencil. My daughter is a danger to herself and me when she does her 5th grade homework. It is not easy for her and she is dramatic. She prefers it blunt or I should say, I prefer it blunt so she doesn't hurt herself. It breaks less often. I prefer my pencils as sharp as they can get especially when sketching.

Never have I seen a finer point. I definitely cannot get that with a manual sharpener.

This sharpener is easy to clean, just pop off the clear area where the pencil scraps collect, empty and reattach.

This is also so much quieter. I know the 2nd grade teacher I am currently working with will want to see this. For some reason kids love to sharpen pencils and when one goes up, suddenly three or four need to go up. It is such a distraction. This is so much quieter then the one we use in class now.

Bringing in for her to see this week. I will try to update at the end of the week.

Celebrate Halloween With Your Favorite Disney Villain!

They truly are amazing. I love the idea of these villain bags and I think Disney fans will too! Why should the princesses get all the fun?!

We received a Maleficent make-up bag to check out the quality. I can tell you it is pretty sweet! Nice detail. Great artwork! You will love them! Collect all. They also make great stocking stuffer gifts too. So get them now. 

Indie Film Lovers Check This Out - All My Friends Are Funeral Singers

The 411:

INTERESTING!

At times I thought what the heck is going on here? I got the premise of a generational fortune teller who is in the family business of fortune telling, future stats and healing thanks to a bunch of ghosts who hang out in her old house. One problem, they are not hanging out, they were trapped by her grandmother.

The movie centers around her and the ghosts but in the mix is the band Califone who provide the soundtrack and appear throughout the movie.

During the first 10 minutes I thought can I make it through this movie but 20 minutes in I was sitting up on the couch instead of lying there.

There are some odd characters like a preacher who is always making out with a bride who died and a little mute girl who turns out to be family.

The movie is carried by actress Angela Bettis who plays Zel. I found myself wondering if she was afraid of the ghosts especially at night. She pours salt around herself when she sleeps. But seems completely unbothered by them during the day when they touch her to help her with her healings or readings.

Great premise.

It was definitely an interesting movie and part of the Indie Pix Mix 10.

You can get the movie alone

 Or as a set with 10 other Indie movies.

Drop Into Autumn With These Lip Colors From Is Ecco Bella

While I love the idea of wearing lipstick because I think it completes the face I am very conscious of it when I have it on. It doesn't matter how many compliments I get when I wear it, I always feel like it is TOO MUCH.

 What I love about these lip colors is:

They aren't dark. They are nice stain to the lip that doesn't scream, I am wearing lipstick.
They aren't heavy. Have you ever put lipstick on and felt it on your lips? Happens to me every time.

I wear the Good For You Gloss every day and appreciate the little mirror on the bottle. I can put it on anywhere.

Over the past three days I have tried the Flower Color Lipstick. It is amazing how they stain the lip but aren't heavy! They last a long time too and I think because they aren't heavy, I don't lick at it feeling like I have to subdue it all day.

Pop Into The Thanksgiving Mood With The King Of Pop.Com

 
If you are like me and have family out of state you are always looking for something different to send to them during the holidays. How many times can I do a box of fruit or sausage and cheese plate over years?

This year I am happy to report that I am way early on my gift ideas for the out of towners in my family.

The King Of Pop.Com is the quickest review I have ever done that included a video and the reason is I was so impressed. I got home by 4:00 PM. Uploaded the video to You Tube by 4:45 and here I am at 5:40 typing out my review while in-between talking to the kids about school, getting one on Facetime with her friend, signing off on Handsome's reading log and downloading a new computer game for them to check out.

OK...here is what I can tell you......

This is not your grandma's popcorn. I am totally in love with all the new flavors included in the Thanksgiving Feast Sampler.  The popcorn taste amazing and if I had a larger appetite I would still be eating it right now.

We have gone through three bags already but tried them all.

Included in the Thanksgiving Popcorn Feast Sampler was:

Herb Roasted Vegetables
Buttered Corn on The Cob
Garlic Parmesan Popcorn
Gravy
Turkey
Cranberry Sauce
Apple Pie
Pumpkin Pie
Strawberry Cheesecake
Stuffing

I have no idea how these popcorn experts created these flavors but they DO NOT TASTE fake! It is crazy!

The kids loved the Buttered Corn on the Cob and Turkey. I loved the...oh...I should just list the ones I did not love...wait...I liked them all. I LOVED the Buttered Corn on the Cob, Apple Pie, Stuffing, Strawberry Cheesecake and Cranberry Sauce. This is why I will never be a size 7 again! EVER!

Still in my work clothes but so excited, I jumped on camera to tell you guys about these delicious, fun snacks.

A Day Of Outdoors

The kids and I spent the day outside yesterday. It was gorgeous and I know these days will be few and far between in the coming weeks.

Goddess even got a play date call while we were out and I invited them to join us but they wanted her to come over. She had slept over this girl's house on Friday and hung with her all Saturday, then we spent the day with them Sunday so I chose to not tell her they were looking for her and keep her to myself because I know in the coming years those days will be few and far between as well.

The sky was a stunning blue and the colors on the trees amazing. The kids and I played at the park, ate lunch at another park and walked around enjoying the weather and each other.

Here are some pics from the day.

The Axe In The Attic - A Movie Review

The 411 by Maria:

The Axe In The Attic is a powerful film done by two film makers focuses on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and it's effects on the people who lived through it.

I remember scratching my head during the first days of Katrina wondering why the government wasn't doing more to take care of our people. These are not refugees from other countries, they were United States citizens who were going through a horrific ordeal yet New Orleans looked like a war torn area.

The horrific stories shared, reiterated what I was feeling. How could this be allowed to happen?

This is an intimate account of what the people were going through told in their own words, plus narrative form.

My heart was bleeding for those who survived and those who perished. Stories of a mom who tossed her baby off a bridge after playing with it along with her other children. A man who was shot because he was demanding answers. People who lost everything. The tears! The visits to the homes all gut wrenching but it was a piece of our history where we saw the breakdown of systems that were set in place for catastrophes like this.

A Must See!

Coolest Mini Figurines - Heroclix

We have never heard of Heroclix but my kids love games and collecting and playing with figurines.

We received this huge lot from Golden Groundhog of 60 miniature Heroclix.

Before I go any further let me tell you what Heroclix are.  You know all those card games kids are playing these days. Like YuGiOh, Pokemon and Magic Cards? Well it's kind of like that but with figurines which my kids LOVED!

In Heroclix you create teams of characters from comic books, video games and villains and battle it out. The dial on the base keeps track of the stats like damage and special abilities. It also tells you their trait symbol, a collector number, a team symbol, the rarity of it if any, their name and more

It can be played with two or four players and the battles take place on a map like this.

My kids and I love looking at them. They have so much detail like this little guy.

My kids love little figurines and right now neither are interested in playing with the maps but they do want more because they want to "collect them". That is literally all I hear these days. They have so many little collections going on. These are small enough that I don't mind and you get a pretty big bag for a really good price.

Old Fashioned Moist Coffee Cake Made Us So Happy

 
About Hahn’s Old Fashioned Coffee Cake Company


The 411 By Maria:

I received a variety pack of  Hahn’s Old Fashioned Coffee Cake and a Bucket of Crumbs last week and it was one of my favorite reviews to date!

Well, anytime I can review food I am a happy reviewer but this time I know exactly what I am sending my Grandparents for Thanksgiving and Christmas this year.

The day I received the cake

Hahn's is exactly what I remember crumb cake tasting like when I was a kid and I lived in Brooklyn where some of the best bakeries are. Since moving out of Brooklyn at 16 I haven't had a cake like that ever. As someone who has lived in over 30 homes, lived in 30 different towns inside New York and New Jersey I can tell you none of the bakeries compared until NOW and the best part, I don't even have to drive to it. I can literally order online and receive the fresh made cake within 2-4 days.

5 days later

The cake is unbelievably moist and even five days it is still as fresh and moist as the day I opened it.

My daughter and I love it! We received chocolate, plain and raspberry in the variety pack which consists of 4 generous slices of each PLUS a bucket of crumbs which is the top part of the cake.

The Bucket of Crumbs is filled with large and medium pieces of the top of the crumb cake. They are delightful and dunk-able.

My grandparents are in their 90s and I am always looking for something to mail to them during the holidays and this will be perfect. They will absolutely love it! So if you are looking for something sweet to send to family and friends during the holiday, consider Hahns!

A Father's Love Through Beautiful Letters To The Kids He Will Never Meet

The Best Gift is to leave a LEGACY

This Holiday Season Create a "Legacy Life"

 

 

 

 

The 411 by Maria:

What a beautiful story told in letter form by a father who will never meet his children. A tale filled with love, remembrance and a legacy created out of a selfless heart. 

A man and his wife split. She is pregnant and doesn't share it and he is dying and doesn't share it so he spends his life writing letters his children will open over the course of their life.

The letters are filled with wisdom about life, growing up, becoming a good person, hopes and dreams for the life he wants for them. 

I loved everything about this book which made me rethink how I started out. I was journaling letters to my children before they were born. Then I started the blog and only once in a while write about them. I wanted them to really get to know me. Know what I thought, how I felt and what I wanted for them that they could carry long after I was gone. It is time to get back to that. 

Readers will love reading the heart of this book. Each letter is overstuffed with a father's love! 

The Most Perfect Scrambled Eggs, Quick, And Easy

After watching the informercials for Eggtastic I was interested in seeing if it actually does work or would it taste like eggs in a microwave?

We received an Eggtastic three weeks ago and have used it at least 10 times and will never go back to scrambling in a pan.

Eggtastic is a ceramic microwaveable egg cooker that cooks your eggs in a 3 step process.

1 - Crack and Egg
2 - Put it in the microwave
3 - Enjoy!

My son and I are the scrambled egg eaters in the house and he NEEDS everything to be the same. As a kid on spectrum he notices any changes in his life and has no problem telling me.  The other day I made meatballs with the left-over cabbage, turkey and ginger mixture Goddess and I use to make dumplings. I made them exactly like I would meatballs. I thought they were delicious. Minis with just a tiny bit of tomato sauce is how he likes them but right away he told me, "no they don't feel right on my tongue, they taste like vegetable". He was right, they were mostly cabbage. Forget buying the cheaper version of anything. HE KNOWS! So when I placed the first batch of eggs in front of him, I stayed close by. It was the big test.  He put the first fork full in his mouth and then another, and kept going.

Hooray! He liked it, would I like it?

I made mine scrambled as well but the next morning I decided to have poached eggs instead. A tiny bit of water, my two eggs and a minute later I had delicious poached eggs.

There is no oil necessary! The eggs cook up light and fluffy and the clean up is a breeze. PLUS, I don't have to stand over the stove scrambling eggs. I put it in the microwave, hit a minute or more depending on how many eggs I have in there. Go about my business and by the time I come back they are ready to be eaten.

You can eat them like I do right out of the canister or like Handsome does in a plate because he is quicker to dive in and the canister does get hot. You need a towel or pot holder to grab it from the microwave.

Don't like just scrambled eggs? You can even add fillings, I've added cheese, ham, spinach, whatever you want!

Sexy Pain-Free Tattoos

I am completely obsessed with these metallic and black tats. The Fashionista Tattoos come with 6 sheets containing 87 tattoos that look amazing on any color skin.

The tattoos are waterproof and last about 6 days without fading. My daughter and I fight over which tats we want. 

 
Like all temporary tats they go on your skin by removing the plastic sheet that cover the dark, transferable side of the tattoo. You add water to the paper side of the tat and press the tat paper against your skin with your finger, slowly pull the paper away and you have a stunning tat.

I love this one which I wore for 3 days. Since it was on my hand I came off quicker due to washing my hands often. I got so many compliments on this tat. Over the course of 3 days at least 11 strangers came up to comment on it. All of them wanting to know where I got it. 

They are really pretty!

SKG Ultrasonic Facial Brush Makes My Skin Feel Like Silk!

My Video:

  

I love this Facial Brush. It is not only a beautiful item but my face feels amazing after I use it. It can be used with moisturizer, cleaner, serum. Whatever you are using.

The ultrasonic facial brush comes with two heads. One very fine brush and one not so much. It says that one is for dermabrasion but I don't feel either one works that way. They both make my face feel like silk after I use them.

Simply use the brush in a circular motion all over your face to get a deep down clean or an extra fine moisturized face.

Most of the brushes I have used in the past rotated the brush head, taking my skin with it as it rotated. Adding lines and wrinkles. This doesn't do that as it vibrates the whole thing and you get a nice, smoothness as you run it over your face.

Definitely a great product for yourself or as a gift! It came in a beautiful box.