Green Giant Seasoned Steamers Review & Giveaway

Now, more than ever, you can leave your family craving more vegetables with every meal and break through meal monotony with a new palate-pleasing vegetable option for everyone!   With new Green Giant Seasoned Steamers, eating vegetables just got easier and more delicious!

Available in six different varieties, Green Giant Seasoned Steamers are one of the first sauce-free seasoned vegetables to bring unique chef-inspired seasonings and premium cut vegetable blends to your dining room table.

These tasty Seasoned Steamers are bound to spice up any meal with six varieties including: Mediterranean Blend, Tuscan Seasoned Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts with Sea Salt and Cracked Pepper, Honey Roasted Sweet Corn, Honey Dijon Carrots and Backyard Grilled Potatoes.

We tried the Brussel Sprouts since they are the only variety free of the allergens we are currently avoiding.

 My ever present kitchen assistant helped me get dinner together.

We loved them!

If you think you'd look stylish heating up some veggies in the cute apron modeled by my even cuter kitchen assistant, you're in luck! There is a fun prize package to give away as well! It includes:

 

VIP coupon for a free pkg of Green Giant Seasoned Steamers

Apron

Green Giant Serving Spoon

Mixing Bowl

Disclosure: The coupons, information, and gift packs have been provided by Green Giant® through MyBlogSpark. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Flashback Friday: Skeleton Jammies

 2010

 

2012

 

It's Fall, Ya'all!

Well, it was.  It has been over 80 the last couple days!
But we did have a couple cooler days before that and got in the spirit by doing some Halloween decorating and having our first fire of the year!

 

 Jazzy always likes to join in on the fun!

  Right on cue with the cooler weather, Konny got croup and took nearly a whole week to get over it.  Poor Bear! 

 

Because of this, we skipped our trip to the pumpkin patch at got some pumpkins from the local Catholic Church that sells them to fund their mission trip.

 

Now we just need that wonderful fall weather to return so we can cook up some yummy soups and stews and build more fires!



Kelton...3rd Grade & Soccer

It's amazing how watching your child grow and mature before your very eyes can make you oh so proud and make you want to burst into tears at the same time!

The grade school has proved to be an exciting step up for Kelton.  In the morning before school, they don't line up in the gym, waiting for their teacher to walk them to class.  They can go into the gym and play knock out.  He's doing great in class.  He's still excelling above average and loves learning, so they've started MTSS (Multi-Tier System of Supports) to make sure he'll continued to be challenged.

He brought home this Top Cat award a couple weeks ago!

He was super excited about homecoming and insisted I paint his face.  (Good thing I like green!  That eyeliner came in handy!) 
 

We're in our 5th season of soccer this fall.  Since he's moved up an age group, he's now younger than half the players instead of older like in the spring.  I just thought he looked small before, some of these kids are practically twice his size!  I was curious how he would handle not being quite the star he was last season, but he's doing great!  His game is really improving and I am over the moon to report he scored a goal last weekend!  I really enjoy watching the games. Unfortunately this weekend was rained out.

 

I could not be more proud of this guy.  His zest for life is refreshing and I am so blessed he is mine.

 

I am amazed how often these kids are on the ground.  They're pretty aggressive this year (and the elbows are flying)!  Kelton always gets right up, brushes off and continues playing.

Pumpkin Spice Hot Cocoa

I believe I invented this recipe two years ago when I was nursing Konny.  With soy and dairy out of the question, so was Starbucks.  That left me up to my own devices to create yummy drinks at home with allergy friendly ingredients.

I'd been making my hot cocoa by the cup since I was nursing Katie, so really all this involved was adding the pumpkin goodness.  What is it about fall that makes us scramble to fill our bellies with as much pumpkiny delights as possible?  Mmmm!

This hot cocoa is super easy and quick to make!  I prefer to mix it up, slip on my fuzzy socks and see what I've got on the dvr.  All after the kids are in bed, of course!  Gather your ingredients and let's get started.

2 Tbsp cocoa
2 Tbsp sweetener (brown sugar, stevia, sucanat, etc)
2 Tbsp pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 cup (your preferred variety) milk

Put all ingredients except the milk in your favorite mug and stir to combine.  Add just enough hot water to create a slurry. 

Next, heat up the milk to your desired temperature.  Then, for me, this is where it gets fun!  I whip out my Aerolatte.  My dear friend, Lisa, presented me this for Christmas the year of "no Starbucks allowed".  She always knows how to make me smile!

 

Start frothing that warm milk until you get a nice big head of foam on the top.  It is amazing how well it really works!

 

Mix your warm milk into your chocolate pumpkin slurry and then add a big blog of foam on top (or whipped cream, but we keep things allergy friendly around here).

 

ENJOY!

 

 

 

Review: Glade Expressions

Because of the children's allergies, opening the windows to allow the fresh air in isn't a common occurrence at this house.  Sometimes cooking smells (or stinky boy smells) can linger.  That's why I always like to have some air fresheners on hand.

The Glade Expressions Collection is inspired by art and designed to be left out on display. These authentic, easy-to-use home fragrance products release scents that open up note by note, filling your home with lightly layered fragrances and inviting life in. The breakthrough line includes two unique, refillable products:

Glade Expressions Fragrance Mist comes in a chic holder that blends with your décor for a burst of fragrance that's always out and available.

The Glade Expressions^® Oil Diffuser releases authentic and exotic fragrances without having to plug it in or find batteries. The trendy holder matches décor perfectly.

The fragrance mist is available in 4 wonderful scents and the oil diffuser is available in the same great scents minus the cotton & italian mandarin.

• Cotton & Italian Mandarin
• Fuji Apple & Cardamom Spice
• Lavender & Juniper Berry
• Pineapple & Mangosteen

I chose the oil diffuser in pineapple & mangosteen and the fragrance mist in fuji apple & cardamom.  I love that these are refillable, promoting less waste.  The diffuser, I placed in the basement where less than desirable scents tend to get trapped and I use the mist as need upstairs.

Make sure to LIKE Glade on facebook and visit glade.com to check out all their latest products and fragrances, plus stay up to date on special offers.

Disclosure: I am a BzzAgent and received complimentary coupons to try Glade Expressions. The opinions expressed here are my own and may differ from other's experience.

Mary Kay Lash Perfection Package Review and Giveaway

What girl doesn't love a new mascara? Lucky for me, I was able to try these out just after discovering I had a bum ankle that would greatly affect my running. A new tube of mascara can make just about any day a little bit brighter!

The Mary Kay Lash Perfection Package features a primer, three mascaras and a lash & brow serum. Whether you’re a fan of lush, long, or resilient lashes, Mary Kay has a variety for you! Each formula features the coveted “Smart Wiper” technology to deliver the perfect amount of mascara.

Mary Kay mascaras are available in black and black/brown, and are ophthalmologist tested and suitable for sensitive eyes.

• New Mary Kay Lash Brow Building Serum is a gentle, fast-drying serum powered by the Lash Response Complex – a boost of a peptide, red clover extract and an amino acid blend that helps provide what lashes and brows need to stay healthy and strong.  7 out of 10 women said their lashes appeared fuller in just 30 days.†
• Mary Kay Lash Primer, adding dramatic definition while creating stronger, fuller and longer-looking lashes. The exclusive Panthenol-Pro Complex helps to strengthen and condition lashes.
• Mary Kay Lash Love Waterproof Mascara can help you achieve water-resistant, no-smudge lashes that appear fuller, lifted and multiplied all day. 
• Mary Kay Lash Love helps to define and deliver four times the volume without the worry of overdone lashes.  The formula combines moisturizing benefits from the Panthenol-Pro Complex and Vitamin E with the glam effect of volume and definition.
• Mary Kay Ultimate Mascara creates the look of big, bold, separated lashes for all day wear with just one coat.

†Study conducted by an independent research company

Opening the package was like Christmas.  How pretty and oooh ahhh, look at all that mascara!

I went right for the waterproof mascara, probably because I'm a crier and learned long ago that waterproof was the way to go.

I absolutely how it enhanced my lashes without them looking thick or clumpy.  I also discovered after taking this photo I am in desperate need of the lash serum as well.  My hair is forever thinner from having children and apparently so are my lashes.

I'm looking forward to continuing to use these great products and thanks to Mary Kay, there is a Lash Perfection Package to give away also.  It includes all 5 products listed above!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclosure: The information, products and additional Mary Kay gift pack was provided by Mary Kay through MyBlogSpark.

Therapy is FUN!!

 We've been having weekly physical therapy for Konny at Heartspring for a little over a month now and he is loving it!  He is always so excited to go and adores his therapist.

There just happens to be a big Thomas set in the waiting room.

We're working on overall strengthening, jumping, stairs and throwing.  The goal is to learn these activities correctly so the muscles that have atrophied due to disuse will become stronger.  Plus, the stronger his muscles are, the less he will fall.  He's so clumsy because his muscles fatigue so quickly.

One of his issues, we've been dealing with since he was an infant and that is the muscle weakness in his neck. He will still tilt his head sometimes when he's tired and has a lot of difficulty lifting his head and looking up when in the prone position

And when you're good and work really hard at therapy, you get to play in the ball pit!  Katie really enjoys this too.