Archive for November 20th, 2009

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Dirt Devil. All opinions are 100% mine.

As much as I love shopping outside my home, the holiday season is one of my least favorite times to head out. The hustle, bustle, and the stress worn on so many faces is quite discouraging to me. Everyone is trying to get the best deal from going to store to store but they could easily cut their time in half simply buy shopping online. I am a big online shopper, I’m always trying to hunt for the best deal. I find so many sites are helpful in their navigation as well as their fantastically presented guides to consumers, for example the Dirt Devil Holiday Gift Guide!

Dirt Devil has really outdone themselves with their guide. I found it simple to read through, with many main gift categories such “Gifts For Him”, “Gift For Her” and even featured “Family Favorites” . The deals are fantastic that I’ve even considered taking advantage of them myself!

Diurt Devil Products are the kind that keep giving even after the Holiday season is over! I surely wouldn’t complain in the least bit, if I received anything mentioned from their guide! Did I mention that there all also Free Shipping Shortcuts in this guide? The Dirt Devil guide provides 300 ways to save on online shopping!

I’m glad to have come across Dirt Devil Holiday Gift Guide and highly recommend everyone to check it out!

Jane Doiron’s cookbook “Make-Ahead Meals For Busy Moms” is definitely a cookbook for all families. I recall a time when I could’ve use the recipes and helpful information found in make-a-head meals desperately. The time of which I speak is when I gave birth to my first daughter. Both my husband and I were worn out from lack of sleep and just getting into the swing of things. I was recovering from having my daughter and on top of that working on properly nursing my child on top of pumping. I didn’t even want to think about venturing off to make a meal and whatever I did make had to be quick and fast. My husband with his lack of sleep and his 12-14 hours days, lovingly came home, nurtured my daughter and I, and somehow pulled off a meal. I’m really thankful for such a wonderful and at the time very worn out husband.

I know without a doubt, that when our next child comes into the picture, I’m going to have several months worth of meals ready to go in the fridge and freezer. I have resources like  Jane Doiron’s cookbook “Make-Ahead Meals For Busy Moms” to see to that.

In this fantastic cookbook, you’ll find the following sections: Introduction, Helpful Tips,  Appetizers, Breakfast and Brunch, Dessert, Main Dishes, Side Dishes, Soup, Measurements Equivalents, and an index of all the recipe.

I really appreciated the helpful tips section as I learned many new things! Did you know that they make buttermilk in a powder format? I had no idea! Knowing this, I can make more recipes I love when I want to without having buttermilk going bad in my fridge!

Most of all the recipes found in this book tell you what you can do to prepare most if not all of it a day ahead. I found the recipes that featured freezing directions to be the most helpful to myself! I have not tried any of the recipes this yet but there are so many tasty selections to choose from. Next week I’m probably going to try the pumpkin pie recipe out and freeze my pies to cook later! I recall helping my own mother the day before Thanksgiving and being nearly worn out on Thanksgiving Day due to all the cooking and cleaning of the house. If things like pies and casseroles can be frozen and taken out to cook on the day when you need them, so much rush, stress, and anxiety can be lifted so you can enjoy your time with family and friends. That is of course unless the kitchen is your stress free safe haven. Whatever the case may be, I really encourage everyone to pick up Make-Ahead Meals For Busy Moms, you won’t be sorry!

If you’d like to purchase this cookbook, you can find it at Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com for about $16.00.

Win It!

Jane has generously offered a copy of  Make-Ahead Meals For Busy Moms for giveaway to one of my readers! Read the rest of this entry »

Dreamlets are uniquely designed plush toys created by a Seattle based company. These one of a kind characters were made to encourage us to take life a little less seriously and  to remind us that we already have the life we’ve always wanted.

I like to say I’m a pretty simple girl and that being so, the simplicity of these fun characters really drew me to them! They are off the wall adorable ( at least to me) and make me smile each time I look at them!

The Dreamlets family consist of the six following characters, Beebee, Ceecee, Stanley, Uncle, Thinko and Qoindo. Each Dreamlet is handmade and designed to withstand the adventures of everyday life.Beans are added into their bodies giving them weight, and high-quality, and the color-fast fleece fabric make them as durable as they quite are squeezable.

There is no real packing that these came in just so you know. The tag that is on each of the characters includes a bio and also opens up to reveal a special code that you can use to register the plush on the Dreamlets website. Once you have registered your Dreamlet, you are given the opportunity to donate to a percent from purchasing your plush to one of several  organizations that support creative thought through funding and education.

My whole family loves our Dreamlets! My husband loves the off the wall look of each character as well as the fact they all have their own personalities. We literally were sitting around comparing ourselves and trying to figure out who we were most like.  For example,  my husband is more like Thinko, Booksmart & Thoughtful and I am more like Qoindo, Creative & Spontaneous! Our curious daughter is most like Ceecee, fun and adventurous! My daughter loves playing with the Dreamlets! She’ll drag them around the house ( these toys can withstand a lot!) but has really favored Uncle as  she makes sure he resides in her bed each night.

On the Dreamlets website, you’ll find free e-cards which feature unique artwork and several fantastic personalization options. Soon to be added is a note section which I believe you can sign up to receive words of  encouragement  throughout your week!

We love our Dreamlet family and hope to see more added to the line soon! I think these would make a fantastic gift for anyone!

Dreamlets retail for $25.00 each and are available on the Dreamlets website. You can follow Dreamlets on Twitter here.