Try it Tuesday

Thomas' Mini Squares Bagel Bread
100% Whole Wheat


I know, I know.... I almost missed Try it Tuesday! I've been really busy plus our power went out today due to some really strong winds! We used our generator to get some things working though thank goodness. But I haven't had an opportunity to post until now.

Ok, on to the review. Thomas' Mini Squares Bagel Bread is yummy! I haven't tried the plain kind (I believe they only come in plain and wheat), but the wheat was pretty good.They come in a package of 8 with 150 calories, 1 gram of fat, 4 grams of fiber. Don't confuse these with the regular size squares though. These are the mini's. But they are plenty big enough for a nice sandwich. I toasted mine with BBQ chicken breast. For WW's, it's 2 pts per bagel, meaning the whole thing, not just half.

The only negative I could find about it, is that it's not really bagel-y tasting. It's more like a dense bread. Usually bagels are a bit firm on the outside, but these squares are softer than that. It's still a change from regular old wheat bread, so I like it. I think I'll try making mini pizzas on them next. Yum!


P.S...I also totally love Thomas' multigrain light english muffins! They have a whopping 8 grams of fiber and only 100 calories each! Only 1 WW point. Yay!

Seen on shelves & Ads:
Hershey's Mint Truffle Kisses and Hot Cocoa Kisses! They both sound really yummy. Maybe I'll review those next Tuesday!

Celebrate!

Happy Turkey Day

Sorry...got rid of the Mushy gram...it got annoying after awhile. Next time I'll put the mushy gushy gram on the side bar where it can be removed easily. I still like Mushy Gushy though...you should go make your own! They are funny and FREE! Weeeeeee

www.mushygushy.com


Soon to come: Photo of our "I am thankful for..." poster

Black Friday Ads

Anyone going Christmas shopping this Friday?

Did you check out the ads online yet? My title is a clickable link to www.bfads.net. Look at the ads before they come out in tomorrow's paper.

I doubt I'll be going this year since we are broke as a joke right now. If I do, it will be to Toys R Us, since they have a few things I would buy for my kiddos. They also have in-store-only items that you can view on their website.

Gift Idea Blog

I stumbled across a blog for gift ideas. The whole blog is dedicated to ONLY gift ideas! How cool is that? Need a quick gift for your VT ladies? Kids teachers? Check out the blog! Creative Holiday Gift Ideas

Also, there are links to other sites with gift ideas. I think I might add my own idea. Well, it's not actually my "own". But I saw it years ago and it's perfect for a quick easy gift.



Wrap up a can of Rootbeer (or a bottle of IBC rootbeer) and a can of baked beans. Attach a tag that says, "Have a rootin' tootin' Christmas!". Cute huh? Would be perfect for a guy. My kids have a few guy teachers this year. Hope they have a sense of humor!

Anyway, if you need a gift idea, check out the creative holiday gift ideas blog.

UPDATE: I'm stealing this from Nikki...she has a great blog link with tons of ideas for gifts and decor! Check out Tip Junkie! And thanks for letting me steal the link & post it without asking Nikki....hee hee

Try it Tuesday

Vitatops!!



Ok, so these are not something that I've tried recently. They are something I eat EVERYDAY! I can't praise Vitatops enough! Being on Weight Watchers, I have found plenty of food to fill me up yet be low in fat and calories. But my all time favorite are Vitatops!

These babies are 2 ounces of pure addiction for me. They have 6 grams of fiber, 100 calories and tons of vitamins. They come in many flavors, but my favorite is the deep chocolate. They have chocolate chips..mmmmm. Of course there is a certain WAY to prepare these babies. If you don't do as I say, I promise that you will be disappointed in your tops. They taste awful if you don't follow my instructions! I know, I know...sounds weird right? But honestly, you MUST listen to me!

#1....keep your tops frozen at all times. They have no preservatives! They will quickly dry out if not kept frozen.
#2....when you want to eat one, you MUST microwave that little critter! I heat it for about 35 seconds. It will be nice and warm (comfort food!)and the chips will be melty. You may also toast the top using a toaster oven or the plain old toaster. Using a slice toaster might make a bit of a mess though since the chocolate chips like to stick, but I do it anyway. My trick is to wet the top of your Vitatop and then sprinkle a bit of Splenda on top. When it's toasted, it's has a nice sweet crust. Mmmmm.
#3.....There is no number #3 really...but I wanted to repeat that you MUST HEAT YOUR TOP! It just doesn't taste right if you don't!

Ok, now that I've shared my secret food....don't buy them all up at Meijer or I will hunt you down and knock your VitaTOP off! Just kidding. I do love these things though and before a few months ago I had to order them online Vitalicious.


But now I can get them at my local Meijer grocery store for $3.99 in the freezer section near the waffles. They come in a box of 4. Kind of expensive, but soooo worth it to me. Not everyone really likes these, but if you just heat them, they have a whole new taste.

Meijer only offers the deep chocolate and the blue bran flavors. But you can visit the site and they have other flavors such as corn, chocolate banana, chocolate peanut butter etc. They also come in 2 oz and 4 oz muffins, but I like the tops better. The muffins have a different consistency which I'm not fond of. They also make vitabrownies (love em!), vitacakes (never tried) and also they all come in mix form. I've tried the brownie vitamix and they were yummo! Again, have to heat the brownies for the best flavor.

My favorite way to eat a Vitatop is to heat it then place 1/2 cup of Edy's Loaded chocolate peanut butter ice cream on top!. MMMM.

Oh, very important information....if you are counting points for Weight Watchers, a Vitatop (they only come in 2 oz) is only ONE point! Yessssssss

Try it Tuesday

John Frieda Luminous Color Glaze

Another non-food post!
Recently, I tried John Frieda's Luminous Color Glaze brilliant brunette. The only reason that I tried it was because it was discounted big time and I thought I'd do something a little different with my look. :)

The bottle says it's a 'color glosser' and 'shine booster'. I really like my hair color (nice and dark) and using this product just affirmed that fact. It did lighten it with a brown/reddish hue. It's nice, but I'll stick to my natural dark hair color thank you very much.

The product is meant to be used in the shower after using the same brand shampoo and conditioner. Of course I used my own brand that I like. What a rebel I am.
When I first tried the product, I thought I had put too much on. It said to leave it on for about 3 minutes and use it a minimum of 3 times a week. The 3-minute timing wasn't the problem, it must have been the amount that I used. It wasn't too much color-wise, but for the shine part, it was too much. It left my hair limp and unmanageable. The next time I tried it, I used less thinking this would clear it up. Nope. Still limp. So basically I decided to use a very tiny amount and only smear it over parts of my hair that I wanted lighter color on. Instant highlights is what I was going for. It didn't work out too well because I just couldn't get past making my hair lighter! But I bet it would work for someone else.

All in all, I bet the glaze is a great product for those who want their hair lighter, but not for me. Also, I accidentally dropped some of the glaze in the corner of my shower not noticing it. It will stain a fiberglass shower. Be careful. But it's not meant to last forever, so the stain is gone now. The same can be said for your hands when you use the product. But a little soap and scrubbing takes care of that.

I say buy it if you want! I'm not sure how the other shades would work (red and blonde), but the 'brilliant brunette' was ok for me :)

New Era Magazine Submission

This past summer, we all went to the Country Dairy in New Era, Michigan. We love the squeaky cheese they have there and the free all-you-can-drink chocolate milk. The ice cream is yummo too. So along the way, we stopped in front of the New Era village signs to take some pictures. Jillian was excited since she frequently reads the New Era magazine that is published by our church. Thinking that perhaps if we took her picture in front of the sign, and then submit it to the magazine, they might publish it! Ok, don't get excited. They turned us down :( I guess they have too many submissions of photos and articles and they have to draw the line somewhere. Seems to me they published a similar picture of our friend Sally R. standing in front of the same sign. That was over 25 years ago though. Oh well. It still makes a nice picture and perhaps we will just put them up on the YW bulletin board at our Ward. Here they are:





Notice the Kirtland t-shirt. We were able to go their this past August. I'll do a post about that sometime. In the mean time, there are a couple Kirtland pictures of us on the left hand side of this blog. One is of the kids and cousins on the Whitney store front and another of our family as well as my sister Valerie's family on the steps of the Johnson Farm.

Try it Tuesday

OxiClean?

I dunno. I'm not really feelin' it OxiClean. Why aren't you impressing me? I've been looking at other blogs and reviews and most people seem to like the product. I must be one of the few who isn't especially hipped up about it.

I really wanted it to work since my son has the blackest socks. My dh's under-g's also need a little sumthin' sumthin' to brighten them up. Trying the OxiClean doesn't seem like it's cutting it. I soaked the whites for hours with not much in the results department. Well, the water turned dark so it must have done something. But the socks and under-g's are still dingy. I don't like to use bleach since it breaks down the fabrics, so I liked that there was no chlorine in OxiClean. I've also used it in regular laundry loads, but can't really tell the difference.

If anyone else would like to share their own review of OxiClean, I'd love to read it. I won't count the product out completely yet. I'm always a sucker for 2nd chances. What else do you use it for? Do you use other OxiClean products? Does the creepy guy from the commercials annoy you in your dreams as you sleep? Hee hee


By the way, did you notice that this is the first Try it Tuesday that didn't involve FOOD?!!!!

Tagged!

Ok....Caity has tagged me. My first tag. Here are 6 things about moi (I bet most of you wouldn't even know these things about me!)


1. I'm totally addicted to Edy's Loaded Chocolate Peanut Butter ice cream (it's not really ice cream..it's more of an ice milk). I will head right to the store as soon as we polish off a container. Heck, I hardly even let anyone else eat it. I buy them their own flavors! Yes, I still fit it in my Weight Watchers plan. I usually eat 1/2 c.(3pts) with a heated up Vitatop (1pt) so it's kind of like a brownie or cake sundae. Mmmm.

2. I'm a peeker. No, not that kind of peeker! I just like to casually (hee hee) look into other peoples houses as I drive by them. Not to see what they are doing, but to see what their decor is etc. I totally love the show, "House Hunters" because then I get to peek from the privacy of my own home. Hey..wait a minute. If I'm a peeker, who is peeking in my house?! Thanks to my dh's love of his large t.v. hanging on the wall, everyone that drives by can see what shows we are watching. Take a look sometime...I'm sure you will catch me watching the #3 thing about me.

3. I never, I mean never, miss an episode of Days of Our Lives. I know, I know. Mindless soaps do the brain no good. But I had started watching it about 15 years ago and always keep up on what goes on in that show. Gotta love DVR's & Tivos. And yes, it's the only soap that I watch.

UPDATE 11/8/07: I forgot to mention that in 1999, dh and I were lucky enough to be in LA (my sister lives in San Diego) and take a tour of the NBC studios. Guess which set they let us see? Yep, Days of Our Lives. It was neat to see things that we actually saw in the show. Plus, I was able to see Kate Roberts (don't know her real name) and Victor Kiriakis (John Aniston, Jennifer Aniston's father) rehearsing a scene. They made us hushhhh for it. I also got a couple autographs from some Days actors/actresses (Carrie, Curtis). Plus we went to see The Tonight Show with Jay Leno that night. That part was awesome. The guests were Jennifer Jason Leigh, Hulk Hogan, Gilbert Godfried and singing was 98 degrees when they first came on the music scene. Boy, I'm making this sound like I'm a Days freak. I'm not..really! :)

4. I've started my own High-Low journal. Not an online journal, but a real one. I list the "High" of my day and the "Low" of my day. Then I write down how I can make the "Tomorrow" a better day or fix the "Low" from the day before. It might just mean developing a better attitude about something, fixing a problem, a goal to finish or simply saying something nice to someone. I'm using this as a Personal Progress goal. I'm doing PP along with the Young Women in my Ward, but mostly I'm doing it for me.

5. I have my own Myspace! It's not like this blog though. I really only have it to be able to see my daughters space (she calls it, spying on her...wink). I can't see hers unless she is logged in already or I have my own account. I also opted to get my own to be able to see my nieces, nephews and friends spaces. I didn't realize my friend Bonnie had one. Obviously Myspace has it's bad points. I've seen many teenagers spaces with objectionable things & songs on them. Teenagers that I know. So sad. I'm wondering if it is even worth letting my teenager have one. I'll be thinking about this.

6. Last but not least.....I love ALL different types of music! I'm a huge fan of the band Chicago, but I also love 3 Doors Down. I like hard rock, soft rock, alternative, top 40, 80's, country, religious, classical etc...the list goes on! Here is a short list of artists that I really like (not a whole list though because like I said, I enjoy many types!):

-3 Doors Down
-Chicago
-Martina Mcbride
-Hoobastank
-The Titanic Soundtrack
-Barry Manilow
-Amy Grant
-Nickelback

The only music I do not like is rap. Rap is crap. One more tidbit about me is that when I was about 13, I was in the Def Leppard fan club!!! No, I'm not a big fan now, but I still remember the words to many of their songs!


Ok, so now I'm supposed to tag 6 other people. The problem is that I don't really know 6 other people who blog! Caity already tagged Holly & Beth, so I can't tag them. I'm assuming Megan was tagged, so that leaves Austin and I doubt a teenager would like to be tagged by one of his Mom's friends. So...I guess my tagging ends here. Maybe some of my family & friends who read my blog can get on the ball and start your own blog huh?! You know who you are!