Liquid Soap

I bet my family goes through 2 or three bottles of liquid soap per month.  And while I do like splurging sometimes for a fuffy bottle of soap, I don't want to do it every time.  You can usually buy the store brands for a dollar or less and soap is all pretty much created equal right?  I like to buy Equate brand of soap at Walmart and the front label easily comes off leaving it looking as good as a more expensive brand. 

TOP 5 PLACES TO SHOP FOR A BARGAIN!

1. Walmart - great prices on everything from dishes to pet supplies. Go to http://www.walmart.com/ to find a store near you.
2. Food 4 Less - for groceries at a good price. The weekly ads are posted on http://www.food4less.com/
3. Kohl's - low prices on clothes and shoes, but they also have gifts and housewares.  Find a brand you like and check in on that section when you are in the neighborhood.  Last time I was there, they had alot of racks that were 80% off! http://www.kohls.com/
4.  Flea market - go to a local flea market. Mine has flowers, jewelry, pictures...  To find one in your area go to http://www.fleamarkets.org/
5. H&M - Where else can you get a dress for $15?  Go to http://www.hm.com/ to find a store.

STARBUCKS VIA

Its paper tubes filled with instant coffee. 

Three single serving tubes in a pack.

You purchase them at Starbucks coffee shops (maybe other places too, I don't know)  for $3. 

I do not like instant coffee so I was not going to try it ever but decided to do it for my blog.  Well...It isn't as good as getting a cup of joe at Starbucks or Coffee Bean Tea Leaf but it is good for traveling or if you work in an office with bad coffee.  Its super easy:  just put the powder in a cup and add hot or cold water (yes, it dissolves in cold water, the granules are VERY fine).  It doesn't make a very big cup of coffee since you only add 8 oz of water. 

Additional Notes:

It is way better than any other instant coffee.

BARILLA PLUS PASTA

I bought the Farfalle pasta (the ones shaped like a bow). 
The ultimate test of pasta to me is to just prepare it with a little butter, salt and pepper so I can really taste the pasta and not judge it by the sauce. 
I thought it was more dense than a regular pasta.  Thicker and dryer tasting.  But I did not tell my family it was a multi grain pasta and not only did they not notice, they liked it.  I will probably use it again, especially in my favorite pasta recipes where the pasta would be in a delicious sauce. 
Here's how it compares to regular pasta:

              Barilla regular FARFALLE                                      Barilla PLUS FARFALLE

                

                 Protein: 7 g                                                               Protein:  17 g

                 Fat:  1 g                                                                    Fat:  3.5 g

                 Omega-3:  360mg                                                     No Omega-3

                 Fiber:  2 g                                                                 Fiber:  7 g

Additional Notes:

About $2.50 per box

FIBER ONE BAR

I purchased the chocolate mocha flavor.  It's a delicious chewy granola bar.  9 grams of fiber per bar!  That's the same or more than you would get in a high fiber cereal but MUCH more enjoyable. 
The box of 5 bars was around $4

Additional Notes:
Where I purchased mine, (Walmart) they also had a peanut butter flavor, which did not sound good to me, but also an oats and chocolate that I will be trying next. 

It has 10 grams of sugar per bar (I wish it was less, I wouldn't mind it being less sweet)  and 2 grams of protein. 

BLACK & DECKER FLEX VACUUM

I took a photo of this vacuum near a 16 oz water bottle so you could see how tiny it is.  Also, super lightweight!  

It has pretty good suction.  Great for dog hair (I have 4 dogs)  But the best thing about it is that it charges and then you unplug it to use it!  I vacuumed the inside of my car with it and it was great to not have a cord!  

Its great for window sills, furniture, keyboards, edges of stairs etc.  

Additional Notes

I did the initial 21 hour charge and it lasted long enough to vacuum my car but had to be charged afterwards.  I thought it would last longer.

The hose is short so if you are doing the floors, its kind of awkward.  

dishwashing gloves

Dishwashing gloves makes doing the dishes so much more sanitary.  I use decorative ones from a cooking store; if you are going to dishes, you might as well look cute doing it! 

Here's a tip:  I slather my hands with lotion, then put on the dishwashing gloves.  I can wash in HOT water because the gloves protect my hands from the heat.  The heat from the water causes the moisturizer to melt into my hands.  When I'm done with the dishes, I have super soft skin! 

ipad cover

It folds over to be slightly slanted.

Or you can stand it up for this pose.

I love this cover!  I started out with a padded pouch type cover but whenever I put my ipad in and out, it would smudge it and push 'buttons' I didn't mean to push.  Then I got this folder style.  It's from the Apple store.  Simple- it slides in a pouch on one side and has a folder cover.  Convenient.

Additional Notes:
It also protects the back of the ipad from scratches when I scoot it on a table or desk. 

STARBUCKS COFFEE frappuccino coffee drinks

Starbucks sells these bottles of liquid delight in their refrigerator case in their stores.  But there are smaller bottles sold in four packs at the grocery store.  They come in light or regular, caramel, mocha or vanilla, maybe more flavors but those are the ones I have tried.  My favorite one is the Mocha light.  Weighing in at only 100 calories, it is a tastie treat that motivates me to get out of bed. 

I try to only have one a day because these four packs run anywhere from $5 to $8 per pack. On Wednesdays I babysit two boys ALL day long so I bring an extra one with me on that day to give me a treat and a caffeine boost when they take a nap. 

Additional Notes:
The light flavors are sweetened with Splenda
Even the bigger bottles that are sold separately and the regularly sweetened flavors are only about 150 to 200 calories.
They fill me up for a few hours I guess because of the milk. 

Annie Chun's MINI WONTONS (CHICKEN AND CILANTRO)

My current favorite lunch for when I am eating at home.  It's ready in less than 15 minutes, and that is making them in the frying pan.  I like mine crispy. 
I got the mini wontons at Whole Foods (in the frozen aisle) but I just saw them at Ralph's too.  Those are the two places I have noticed them. 
They are a lunch you can feel good about;  all natural, no preservatives, no MSG, no trans fat and the chicken ones I got are antibiotic free chicken.  I don't know what the other flavors there are since I am so hooked on the chicken and cilantro!  But there are other flavors.  I should try them.
Little packages of crispy on the outside, deliciousness on the inside.  I dip mine in soy sauce and pop it in my mouth!

Additional Notes:
There are a little less than 30 wontons in the package. 

I eat about 13 for lunch by myself.  Hey, they are mini.

Tony Chachere's CREOLE Seasoning

This is a spicy seasoning salt.  It's delicious!  Not too spicy.  It is now a regular, next to the salt and pepper shakers on my kitchen counter. 

Additional Notes:
I use it on pasta, eggs, french fries, popcorn...whatever I would usually salt.

It adds a slightly new flavor to foods you might be tired of.

SUGAR ROSE fresh

I kept seeing this lip stick in magazines on the must have lists.  I was curious because I had seen it at Sephora and it seemed like a colored chapstick but it was about $22.  I thought it was overpriced but when I saw it again in a magazine article, I decided to see what all the fuss was about.  So it's a sheer colored chapstick.  It doesn't go on evenly, it's the consistency of lipstick that is a little melty.  I don't like the product, I am sorry I wasted my money on it. 

Additional Note:
I still use it since I have it anyway,  if I pat it on my lips instead of rub it, it goes on better.

countertop disinfectant

Bleach is a good way to keep bacteria off of the kitchen counters and sinks.  You don't need much.  I keep a quart sized spray bottle with 2 tsp bleach and the rest water.  That's all you need.  It's enough to kill germs but not enough to ruin your towel or washcloth. 

Additional Notes:
It's also good for cleaning bathrooms counters and sinks.
I also use this same mixture if my puppies goes to the bathroom on the floor.

Coconut oil - it's not just for cooking

I got an email from a friend that told other uses for coconut oil. It said to use it as a deep conditioner, moisturizer, massage oil etc.
I tried it as a hair conditioner. I couldn't tell that it did anything. It was hard to rinse all the oil out and had to shampoo it again to get it all out. I won't use it for that purpose again.
As a body moisturizer, I did like it! Its oily at first of course, so I waited to get dressed and rubbed it in really well. I like the idea of a natural product going on my skin because I have heard that whatever you put on your skin, gets into your body too. I have dry skin but this kept my skin looking nice for 24 hours. It wasn't oily after a few minutes. I even used it on my face and it didn't seem to block my pores like it seems like it would. It smells amazing too?
I used virgin coconut oil from Whole Foods. The 365 brand was the cheapest so That is what I used.

Hansen's Natural Fruit Stix

This is a powdered mix in individual size pouches to add to a bottle of water.
I get tired of drinking plain water and it seems we need so much of it!   The powdered drink mixes are a great way to add flavor.  Some of them also add sugar and calories.  The others add artificial sweeteners that are not good for you.  Hansen's is all natural so I gave it a try.  It uses Truvia to sweeten it.  I am not familiar with that product and am just relying on Hansen's 'natural' claim. 
I bought a tea mix and the natural berry flavor on the same shopping trip.  The tea mix is in the trash.  I did not like it at all.  I am not a fan of instant tea powders anyway so I would be curious of your opinion if you have tried it.  Anyway, today I tried the natural berry flavor.  Yum.  It's really tasty!  I will definately buy this again over the artificial sweetener brands.  If anyone reading this knows about truvia, let me know if it is actually better for me. 

Additional notes:
The packs are hard to open.  I needed scissors, so not as 'on the go' as it could be.
Anytime you use these stick powders in your water bottle, take a couple of swallows from the bottle first so the powder has room to mix when you shake it. 

No more spotty dishes!

I have to start my blog with a product that has made me happy for the last month! 

My family moved into a new house a few months ago and in the kitchen, there are the dishwasher drawers.  The owners manual said to use powder detergent in it...so as a rule obeyer, I got powder detergent.  Spots, spots and more spots.  I hated doing dishes because I had to rinse everything that I took out.  Sometimes I even handwashed everything to save a step!  It was very discouraging. 
About a month ago, I got a coupon from Ralphs grocery store for Finish automatic dishwasher dispenser.  I normally wouldn't have tried it because I would think it was a gimmick but I was desperate so during my next grocery store visit, I purchased the Finish automatic dishwasher dispenser.  It was about $10 without the coupon; fair price.  Hallelujah!!  The dishes looked brand new:  spot free and clear!  My glassware looked brand new,  I didn't even have to wipe the silverware.  Even the inside of my dishwasher looked sparkling clean! 
Just so you know how happy this made me, it was even my facebook post that day!

Additional Notes:
My original lasted a few weeks. It looks like it lasts 12 washes.  For about $10 I bought a refill (2 cartridges) that I just slid in. 
You have to watch the countdown on the dispenser, I opened my dishwasher up and the dishes were not so clean so I looked on the dispenser to find that it had run all the cycles. 
It's nice to not have to add detergent everytime you run the washer, not that I am that lazy but it is an added benefit.