12/30/2009

DenTek Textured Sliding Floss Review

Recently I was sent DenTek's new Custom Comfort textured easy sliding dental floss to try and review. What makes this floss different is that it's actually two pieces of floss twisted together, which makes it not only extremely thin, it's also very strong and won't shred. See what my opinion of the complete clean floss was by viewing my video review below.




*This review is a result of a feedback campaign by DenTek Oral Care Inc. The recipients were asked to give their honest opinion about the product they received. Good reviews were not incentivized and poor reviews will not be censored for their opinion of the product.

12/28/2009

Could An Online Degree Be Your Answer To A Better Paying Job?

It seems like everyday I hear someone say, "I just lost my job," or "my hours were cut way back," or "my pay was cut." It's a sign of the economic times we are living in.

Take it from someone who has looked for a job, what you find on Craigslist.org isn't going to normally pay you what you want or what you are worth. However, if you have a degree, you may find it a little easier to find the job you want at the price you to make.

The benefits of getting your degree from an online university are many. The amount of flexibility is something that makes them really attractive. You can work your classes around family, a current job and other obligations you may have.

There are also many different courses to choose from. You may immediately think of degrees like accounting or business, but would you be surprised to know that you can also get an online nursing degree, a degree in criminal justice or even a teaching degree?

If you're worried about the price, online degrees are generally more affordable than going to a campus class. And, fortunately, the same financial help is available for online classes including grants, scholarships and loans.




12/24/2009

I'm In Love With Bath & Body's Body Scrub & Room Sprays


I went to Bath & Body Works a few days ago, and my intent was not to buy anything. Yeah, right! That didn't quite work.

First I decided that I would like a room spray, and they were only $5, so no biggie. I fell in love with the Spiced Cider scent. Oh my! If you like the smell of apples and spices, this one is incredible! It reminds me of the shops in Gatlinburg and I can't get enough of it. It's to the point that my son is begging me to quit sprayngi it saying he can't breathe I've got it so strong. Whatever. It makes me happy.

Then I saw something I hadn't remembered them having before. Body scrubs in the Signature Collection scents. They didn't have any testers so one of the Customer Service Reps opened one for me to try. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVED it and so had to purchase it too!

I love body scrubs anyway, the combination of exfoliating mixed with the oils feels so good on dry winter skin. And, this body scrub is nice because it lathers a little. Something my other scrubs don't do. And, I found it in my favorite scent, Japanese Cherry Blossom. Since I already have the body wash, body creme, lotion, and Eau de Toilette in this scent, it only made sense to get the matching scrub. Hopefully, I won't knock anyone down with my aroma.

We'll be spending the weekend out of town with friends and us girls are going to see if we can find some great after Christmas sales. Hopefully we won't be going near a Bath & Body Works because I know what will happen if I step inside...

The Wedding Planner -- My New Dream Job

I've been married for almost 22 years, and have no intention of re-marrying. I don't have a daughter and my sister is still quite a few years from marriage. But lately, for some strange reason, I've fallen in love with wedding programs.

Much to my hubby's chagrin, you can find Amazing Wedding Cakes, My Fair Wedding, and Say Yes To The Dress, on my DVR. And, I will sit and watch one after another.

It's to the point that I now have decided I want to start, or work for a wedding business. I believe I can make incredible wedding cakes -- even though I've never done it before! Or, I could possibly find you the perfect wedding dress, or maybe even plan your entire wedding from the wedding invitations right down to perfect signature drink for your reception.

OK, truth-be-told, I don't have the time right now to learn how to make the perfect fondant... maybe I'll just start a wedding blog instead. I really need another blog. *sarcasm*


12/18/2009

John Mayer's Battle Studies Only $3.99 - Today Only!


I've picked John Mayer songs a couple times for Music Monday -- because I love him so! I've already purchased my tickets to his upcoming concert this spring, but I hadn't purchased his newest album, Battle Studies, until I saw this special on Amazon.com when I got home this evening.

John's newest album is the album of the day on Amazon.com and can be downloaded for a mere $3.99! But, this special ends at midnight -- so get it now by clicking the link below!

John Mayer's Battle Studies Just $3.99

12/17/2009

I'm Sick, Couponing, And Can't Get Son's Acne Cleared Up

I've commandeered my son's laptop for the day since he's sick and is sleeping. I'm hoping it's just a head cold, especially since I woke up this morning sneezing and sneezing and sneezing some more. Fortunately, I had no where I had to be and have sat on the recliner and typed (and web surfed) all day. I have pork ribs slow cooking in the oven and a candle burning. I'm drinking hot green tea with a little honey and just ate an apple and took some Emergen-C. So, hopefully it's just a swine cold and not the swine flu and we'll be all better soon.

Yesterday I did some grocery shopping and I actually had time to clip and use coupons. I saved $14.63 at one store and $6.70 at another and that didn't include all the bargains I found at our local salvage shop.

One of the things I purchased, for just $2.09, was the Nature's Cure Two-Part Acne Treatment. My son has had acne for a couple years now, and I've tried a lot of different products for it. The one that did the best was Clincal Care, but it seems to not be working as well as it initially did.

My friend says his acne may be related to the amount of orange juice he drinks, but I've cut him back on that and he's still broke out.

I'd like him to visit our dermatologist, I've even offered to pay for the visits so he could receive acne treatments, but he says that it's just part of being a teen and will eventually go away.

I hope it's sooner than later before he gets scars!


Free Shipping, Huge Crocs Sale and Campbells Coupon

Here are a few bargains that I thought you would want to know about. I've taken advantage of two of them and will be looking through the free shipping vendors later this evening.

Free Shipping
Today is Free Shipping Day! More than 700 vendors are offering free shipping with delivery before Christmas. Just visit FreeShipping.org to see who some of the vendors are. You'll find names such as Kohl's, Old Navy, Best Buy, Target and more.

Great Deal On Crocs
I purchased a pair of Crocs that were originally $29.99 for $17.43 -- after shipping! Yep, I got them for just over half price and that included shipping! There are three different codes you need to enter, you can find them on The Thrifty Mama Blog.

Campbell's Select Harvest Coupon
Use the coupon HERE to get $1.00 off a can of Campbell's Select Harvest soups. If you find them on sale, after the coupon you will only be paying a few cents for it!

Happy bargain shopping!

I'm Sure My Skiing Would Make A Blooper Reel

My friend's kids just left for West Virginia to go skiing for the weekend. Would you believe I've never been skiing? Honestly, my balance is so bad and my ankles are so weak that I'm of the opinion that going on ski holidays would probably end badly for me, and possibly anyone around me. I'm sure I'd be even worse than the people in the video below, most of them at least started upright before going down.





A part of me is glad that hubby and son don't care to ski either, but by the same token, I would LOVE to sit in a ski lodge by a roaring fire with a hot chocolate spiked with some peppermint schnapps and a stack of magazines. That's about the only thing I can think of that I would enjoy in the cold. Besides, I can get my fill of other people skiing in just 57 days. That's when the 2010 winter Olympics begin. Then, I'll be able to see Tail Grabs, Iron Crosses, Daffie's and Lincoln Loops to the fill. (Ha! You didn't know I knew the actual names of ski tricks, did you? -- Truth be told, I looked them up! lol!)

12/15/2009

It Broke

I'm typing this on my husbands iPod touch, which means there is a problem. The first problem is that I am so bad at typing on this thing! Thank goodness it corrects most of whAt I key incorrectly but it takes me freaking forever! I much prefer my slide out keyboard that's on my phone, but I don't have a data plan on it.

The bigger problem is that I'm using this because my laptop broke. And, broke is the only good word to use here. It's not a virus or hard drive crash, it's broke where you plug the cord in to power/charge it. The piece you plug the cord in to is gone... it's disappeared inside the laptop.

I will say, at least it broke now and not two weeks from now. My warranty is up on the 27th. Usually my luck is such that it would break on the 28th.

I hope to be able to borrow my son's laptop (He had his last final this morning so will be able to spare it.) to write a few posts on, but if I seem a little sporadic for the next 7 to 10 days, you know why.

12/12/2009

Cool New Merchant Service

I was using Stumble Upon the other day and came across this site for merchant services. Normally I would have just gone to another page, but I wasn't quite sure what this was so I had to investigate a little further.

Now since I have multiple home businesses I've researched a little about merchant services providers and never thought they were worth my time. Who wants to carry a machine or have to find a way to connect your laptop to the Internet?

But what if your means to take a credit card was only a square inch and connected directly to your iPhone?

Well, that's what the Square is! You just plug this little square into your phone's audio jack and have the ability to swipe credit cards. And, not only does it process the payment, it sends all your receipts to your email or mobile phone.

What a great problem solver for vendors! It's quick, it's secure, and they even give a penny of every transaction to a cause of your choice. What will they think of next?

Visit SquareUp.com to learn more.

12/11/2009

Kitchen Wisdom Debated

I received this in an email and thought it was too funny not to share!

Martha Stewart says: Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of an ice cream cone to prevent ice cream drips.
Maxine says: Just suck the ice cream out of the bottom of the cone, for Pete's sake! You are probably lying on the couch with your feet up eating it anyway!

Martha says: To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.
Maxine says: Buy Hungry Jack mashed potato mix. Keeps in the pantry for up to a year.

Martha says: When a cake recipe calls for flouring the baking pan, use a bit of the dry cake mix instead and there won't be any white mess on the outside of the cake.
Maxine says: Go to the bakery! Hell, they'll even decorate it for you!

Martha says: If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it's still cooking, drop in a peeled potato and it will absorb the excess salt for an instant 'fix-me-up.'
Maxine says: If you over-salt a dish while you are cooking, that's too bad. Please recite with me the real woman's motto: 'I made it, you will eat it and I don't care how bad it tastes!'

Martha says: Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.
Martha says: Celery? Never heard of it!

Martha says: Brush some beaten egg white over pie crust before baking to yield a beautiful glossy finish.
Maxine says: The Mrs. Smith frozen pie directions do not include brushing egg whites over the crust, so I don't.

Martha says: Cure for headaches: take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.
Maxine says: Take a lime, mix it with tequila, chill and drink! All your pains go away!

Martha says: If you have a problem opening jars, try using latex dish washing gloves. They give a non-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.
Maxine says: Go ask that very cute neighbor if he can open it for you.

Martha says: Don ' t throw out all that leftover wine. Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.
Maxine says: Leftover wine??????????? HELLO!!!!!!!


12/07/2009

Keeping My Pearly Whites, White


I’m a morning coffee drinker. Unfortunately, though it gives me a morning jolt it also turns my teeth yellow. A general dental cleaning does help, but they are still not as white as I'd like them to be.

Yellow teeth to me, mean poor hygiene and also add age to a person. So I’ve tried many tooth whitening products. Some of them don’t stick, some of them taste awful, and those nasty trays filled with liquid gel are disgusting!

But, I recently purchased the Rembrandt brand whitening strips and was very pleased with the results. They’re easy to use, stick great, and by using just one upper and one lower strip for 30 minutes once a day I saw results in less than a week.

Of course if I had my choice I'd visit a Plano cosmetic dentist and have veneers put on, but since that isn't likely to happen, I'll be using Rembrandt Form-Fit Strips to bring back my pearly whites. --You didn't think I'd quit drinking coffee, did you?


12/05/2009

Walmart Bingo

I ran across this on a local radio personality's website and it made me laugh hysterically. The funniest thing about it is, I think I've seen ALL of these people at my local Walmart!

Next time you run to Wally World, take this along and your boring grocery trip might just be fun!





12/04/2009

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing Makes Just About Any Muffin Heavenly

Why is it that colder weather makes me want to eat? It's like the temperature drops ten degrees and I gain ten pounds! Thank goodness for big sweaters and Solo Slim!

I had been thinking all week that I'd love a big 'ol homemade muffin. Pumpkin was the flavor that kept running through my mind. And then I stumbled across (through Entrecard) a recipe at my new favorite blog, Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice, for cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

Well, that was the straw that broke the camel's back! A half hour later I found myself in the kitchen whipping up a batch of pumpkin muffins with cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

Why had I never considered adding cinnamon to cream cheese icing? It was like heaven! Hubby said it ranked right up there with cinnamon rolls - which, by-the-way, is a huge compliment because that's one of the few sweets he likes.

If you like to cook, I encourage you to check out Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice. Not only do the recipes sound great, the photography on the site (like this photo of her banana pecan spice cupcakes) makes every one of them look amazing. I'm dying to try the Spicy BBQ Shrimp and Cheddar Cheese Polenta. Oh, and the Espresso Coffee Cake Muffins. And, the Devil Dog Cake. And the Loaded Baked Potato Soup. And ...


12/02/2009

Girls Can Play Fantasy Football Too!


I've never liked football. I think it stems from the fact that my dad had season tickets to the University of Louisville football games and I was forced to go to every one of them. However, my hubby LOVES (lives for) football. So, about 13 weeks ago he tells me that he wants me to play in his fantasy football league. What? I know next to nothing about football!

He finally convinced me pointing out that I love computer games and even enjoy guessing the NCAA men's basketball bracket winners and that I didn't have to be good... it was just something we could do together, that it would give us something else to talk about.

What a guilt trip was that bunch of bull? Whatever. But apparently it worked, because I succumbed.

So, on draft day my son sat down with me and asked me to pick players. I started by picking ones I had heard of before, but that ended quickly since Ben Roethlisberger was about the only player I knew. After that I started choosing by the looks of the player. My son just about lost it when I picked someone because he had a better smile than the other candidates.

I knew so little that at first that I was calling my guys WRs and RBs instead Wide Receivers or Running Backs.

However, after a few weeks I started to catch on and even learned to trade my non-performers for better players. When my family got tired of answering questions about which player was better and why, I turned to Google. I found the Rotoprofessor blog and the fantasy rankings at NFL.com and started taking their advice. And guess what? I've won my past three matchups! What's even funnier is that I've become obsessed with my players. While I still know very little about the actual NFL teams - I can tell you all about Hines Ward, Chris Johnson, Frank Gore and the other ten players on my fantasy team.

Monday night, before the game started I was up by 50 points but my opponent had Tom Brady left to play. Hubby and I started out watching the game together. At about 10:30 PM he went to bed and I stayed up and watched the rest of the game. I had to be sure Mr. Brady didn't play good and rain on my parade. Sad, isn't it?

Oh Well, it could be worse. It could be hockey...

Oh, and by-the-way, I'm having a hard time deciding between Ray Rice and Frank Gore this week. If you have a suggestion, let me know!