I Want Some MBT's!

MBT Shoes.The, "Anti-shoe"? Have you seen these shoes yet? I spied them in the Family Circle magazine today. I'm sure I've seen them before, but didn't know the benefits to having a pair.

While they are funky looking, they are the kind of shoe I would love to wear every day. I'd have a pair for casual walking and a pair for my Walk Away The Pounds workout. Heck, I'd wear them anywhere because of the health benefits.

They are designed to boost muscle activity in your legs and decrease stress on your knees and hip bones, providing relief for your joints.

Masai Sensor (Masai Barefoot Technology®) creates a pleasant feeling of walking on a sandy beach or soft moss.

I've read that some doctors are recommending the shoes for people who have back, hip, foot and joint problems. I have backaches all the time, plus my feet hurt. I'm sure it's because of my weight, but it didn't help that I fell at church recently and that I wore flip-flops all summer.

Anyway, these shoes are also designed to help promote good posture. There seem to be a zillion reasons for me to buy some of these shoes...but of course there is one reason that I can't. They are $200 and up per pair. Ouch.

Zappo's has many styles and occasionally they go on sale, but I still can't afford $177 for a shoe on sale. *sigh*

But I can dream about it right? These are the pairs I would buy if I could afford them. Aren't they great? Funky, but great!

I saw a girl wearing these with a skirt in the ads. Works for me!

These would be great for walking as a routine or on hikes.

They also sell sandals and boots. Plus, professional styles. I wonder if they make children's shoes? They would be so much better for their growing feet.

If you're interested in learning more about the benefits of this shoe, visit the website here. The website has a good amount of information plus it's a well-done site.

Annnnd....if you are interested in buying them from AMAZON, please search for them using the sidebar Amazon thingie's I have over there -------> :) Thanks!

P.S....Macie thinks these things are butt-ugly, so now I really wish I could afford them just to embarrass her.

Freebie Alert!

I saw that Lipstock is giving away a free sample of their Chapstock. Wha? Not Chapstick...it's Chapstock. It's a cream lip conditioner. Anyway, try it here.


Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Try it Tuesday.....Ice Breakers restore Pomegranate Lemon-Aid Mints

Thank you to thisnext.com for the photo

Mmmm. I've found a new snack to keep in my purse. Jillian pointed them out to me while we were in the check-out line in Meijer.

Of course we have all heard of Hershey's Ice Breakers. Their newest Ice Breakers product promises to give us vitamins with our candy. Yes, these are mints, yet the flavor is pomegranate with lemon. I like how the name says, "Lemon-Aid". Clever. The mints also come in a cute cream colored tin with a flip-top.

For a serving of 3 good sized mints (only 5 calories for all 3!!), they contain 10% of each of these vitamins: A,C,E & Zinc. Not too shabby. And they are tasty! I really like them. They are more lemon-y than pomegranate, but that's ok with me. They rock.

These mints contain NO sugar, but one bad thing...they DO contain sugar alcohols instead. Sometimes sugar alcohols give certain people digestive problems. But usually I fair well, so I'm not worried.

The new Ice Breakers line also carries an Energy mint, but I didn't pay it much mind because it contains caffeine.

We also tried Ice Breakers Chewy Sours in Strawberry Blast flavor. My husband brought those home for us to try. They are not gum. They are candy, but I wouldn't call them chewy. I think they are more rubbery-hard. Didn't like them so much. I would think the insides should be jelly bean consistency, but they are too hard. The outside shell is tasty with just the right amount of sour, but again, the inside isn't much to write home about. Luckily Brycen likes them (what kid would turn down candy anyway?!), so he took them tonight on his trip to New Jersey with Dad. He better feed my little boy more than just candy though! Why are they going to NJ you ask? They are delivering some Hurricane machines that a distributor bought. That means money in the bank. :) All I have to say is that they BETTER be back in one piece before we eat turkey on Thursday!

Try it Tuesday....

Sorry. Try it Tuesday is taking a little break today. I just have toooo much to do. I'll be back on track next week.

I sure wish I would get on the ball and make a bunch of posts ahead of time. I wouldn't have to apologize for no posts then. Ugh.

Temples Dotting The Earth

I'd love to show this to our Primary kids in the ward, but not sure how to get in on dvd. Isn't it great? And so uplifting in the midst of all the negativity I've been hearing lately.

It's NOT Christmas Yet!

I found this, "Flair" on Facebook.

With the exception of getting a headstart on shopping for gifts (I shop all year for Christmas gifts), is anyone else as sick of seeing Christmas displays, commercials and ads as I am? It's tooooo early!

Oh, and let's not forget the radio stations that started playing holiday music on the FIRST OF NOVEMBER! It's not even Thanksgiving yet! It's still fall! Poor Thanksgiving is soon to be phased out because of all the Christmas commercialism.
:( Way to ruin the true meaning of Christmas.

Did You Start Christmas Shopping Yet?

The Christmas shopping season is upon us!

I have decided to become an Amazon Associate. I am frequently trying to find ways to earn money or save money during the holidays. I thought if I became an Amazon Associate, I might be able to earn a little cash so that I can afford to buy some gifts for my family this year.

If you could help me out, I would MUCH appreciate it! No pressure though....just if you were thinking of ordering something thru Amazon, and you don't mind taking a detour, you can order the same things at Amazon by way of my site.

I will earn a percentage if you shop Amazon through my link on the right sidebar. The Amazon link goes right to my store where you can find any Amazon product. I will also earn if you shop Amazon through either the Deals box or Amazon Search box on the right sidebar. Amazon has some SUPER big steals and deals on toys during the Christmas season! I always shop for toys at Amazon every year.

Anyway, thanks for letting me plug my new venture and any time you want to order an Amazon product, please do it thru ME! :)

Thanks! :)

Try it Tuesday.....Joy's Best Loved Macaroni and Cheese

Joy? Joy is right!!

Joy's Best Loved Macaroni and Cheese side dish is to die for! It's creamy. It's home made tasting. It's delicious. Here is what the website says about the macaroni and cheese side dish:

Flavorful pasta wrapped in a rich tangy cheese sauce with an optional panko bread crumb topping that takes this dish over the top!

It truly is a very good side dish or main dish if you so please. I have always loved panko bread crumbs. And they are tasty on top of this mac and cheese.

To prepare the mac and cheese, I first put the panko cumbs in a saucepan with some butter like the directions suggested. It called for 2 TB of butter, but I just spritzed the bread crumbs with some I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray. It worked just fine. I toasted the crumbs lightly. Next I poured the contents (macaroni noodles and chunks of cheese) of the frozen bag in an electric skillet. The noodles are already cooked, so I just threw it all in and heated it up for 6-8 minutes. It was super easy. As easy as making Kraft mac and cheese, but better. In case you're wondering, the cheese used is actually several different types: Club Cheddar,Blue and Swiss, and a cheese spread. When the mac & cheese was heated thoroughly and the panko crumbs toasted, I just tossed the mac and cheese in a serving dish and sprinkled it with the panko crumbs. Viola!

There are 3 negative things that I have to say about this easy peasy gourmet side dish.
#1.... There are only 3 (1 cup) servings in the whole package. I have a family of 7, so I'd have to buy atleast 2 to feed my family. If I wanted it as a main dish, I'd have to buy atleast 3 packages, maybe 4.

#2....This small package of yummy mac & cheese was expensive at my local Meijer store. Well, if you think $4.00 for 3 servings is expensive. I do because like I said in #1, I'd have to buy 2-3 packages. That could get expensive. I wonder if Sam's Club or Costco sells larger packages?

#3....Joy of Cooking mac & cheese is FATTENING! Go figure. For one serving (1 cup), it's 7 Weight Watcher points. Ouch.

I'd buy this again though. But only if it's on sale and with a coupon :)

Never heard of The Joy of Cooking?

Here is some info I took off of the website:

The Joy of Cooking has been America's favorite cookbook since 1931. With unmatched flexibility and ease, now these delicious Joy-inspired recipes can be customized to be your own.

Joy of Cooking® family-style frozen meal solutions offer products in all of these categories:

Main Dishes Better than homemade, with something for everyone.
Sides Savory side dishes that can complete any meal.
Vegetables Simple, flavorful glazes make these vegetables something special.
Breads Fresh baked goodness on your table in minutes.

Enjoy the taste of homemade without all the work.TM

Macie and I also tried Wonka Nerds Giant Chewy Candies. Yum! They are jelly beans encrusted in Nerd candy. Hmm...and Mmmm. I especially liked the green ones. They were all a little tart like regular nerds candy, but with a chewy jelly bean center. And for only 3 WW points per 1.8 oz bag, they make the perfect movie theater snack. The kind you sneak in anyway. We found these candies at cheapy Dollar General for 60 cents.


I have noticed that I didn't post at all this past week since my last Try It Tuesday. I can explain. It's because I have found Facebook! While talking about it at a family event recently, I decided to get my own Facebook page so that I could see my nieces and nephews pages. I signed up on Thursday of last week (that's 5 days ago) and I have 48 friends now. I have several friends requests out too. I have been in touch with people I haven't talked to in over 20 years! I don't know what it is, but it seems like everyone I know is on Facebook. It's sooo great to see what everyone has been up to and meet their family via their Facebook photo albums. Plus, Facebook is more mature than Myspace, which is more for teenagers (in my opinion). Right now I'm a bit addicted, so I guess that's why I haven't blogged. Don't worry, blogging is in my heart first. I really enjoy journaling in my blog. But catching up with old friends is fulfilling too. I'm so grateful for the internet right now. How did we ever live without it years ago?! Yes, it has it's downfalls (and we all know what those are), but the positives outweigh the negatives for me since I have chosen to use the internet for good. :)

Try it Tuesday.....Crystal Light Immunity Cherry Pomegranate

I bought the, On The Go singles packets of the Crystal Light Immunity Cherry Pomegranate flavor. They boast that it's a vitamin enhanced drink mix. Only 5 calories per serving. But according to the packet, there are 2 servings in it. So 10 calories when you pour the entire packet into a 16 oz. bottle of water or a 2 cup glass of water. 10 calories is still good I guess.

As far as being vitamin enhanced, I guess it's better than drinking a can of soda, but I'm not sure it has better benefits than drinking plain old water. I guess I would drink this for the electrolytes.

The taste is great. I added it to the 2 cups of plain water. It was still a strong flavor, so I could have gotten away with adding more water. The only thing I wish Crystal Light (Kraft Foods) would take into consideration is the dye. The bright red is artificial and doesn't make me want to buy the product any more than if it were no color. I WISH it were no color. Especially since they consider it to be a, "healthy" drink mix. I would go natural with no color. Plus, it wouldn't stain if I spilled.

One thing I really like about Crystal Light drink mixes, is that it mixes so easily. No stirring forever trying to get the powder to dissolve. There is also no sediment on the bottom of my glass. Love it. Now, if they would just lower the price.....something to think about Kraft Foods! I can buy a store brand can of drink mix from Wal-mart about $2 cheaper. Granted, Wal-mart doesn't have vitamin enhanced mixes (that I have seen anyway), but they are cheaper. Even Meijer brand drink mix is cheaper by about a dollar, but again, those are store brands. They taste just as good in my opinion though.
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And now for another review........Honeycrisp APPLES!

FINALLY, I was able to try one! I don't know why I'm so behind the times. I just kept forgetting to buy them. While in Meijer recently, I ran across them. It's about time. Another shopper and I were trying to find a few that weren't bruised or too soft. That's not a good sign. So many people like these apples, that there just weren't that many left. Unless you count the organic ones that were about a dollar more per pound. Hey, Honeycrisp are expensive to begin with. I'm not paying $6 a pound for apples. The other shopper and I joked that the Honeycrisp are "Mommy's Apples", so no kid better try and steal it. Go eat your Gala's. I don't love my kids enough to share. ;)

In case you didn't know....
Honeycrisp apples were developed by the University of Minnesota from a Macoun and Honeygold apple cross (the Honeygold itself a cross between the Golden Delicious and Haralson). Honeycrisps new apple variety was introduced in 1991.

What did I think about Honeycrisp apples? Well, they live up to their name. They are crisp! I love the snap sound they make as I take a big bite. They are nice and big too. No tiny apple here. I did kind of expect them to be sweeter, but I think they have just the right amount of sweet and tart. Yet they aren't too tart. That's one thing that turns me off when I eat apples. If they are too tart, I can't handle it. Wimp.

I'd definitely buy Honeycrisp apples again. But I'm still not sharing. ;) Yum.

Next I need to try Grapples! One of these days I'll try those too. Anyone want to give their opinions of a Grapple?

Well, I'm off to ~VOTE~ now. I'm not afraid to say that I'm voting for McCain/Palin. I'm also not afraid to say I'm voting against legalizing marijuana (they can make a synthetic version) and against stem cell research. If I could vote YES on Proposal 8 in CA, I'd do that too.

Something To Think About quote

~~If the devil tries to remind you of your past, remind him of his future!~~

I saw this on another person's signature and thought it was great! Wish I had my computer back with my scrapbooking program though. It would make a nice layout to save and keep as a screensaver huh?

Chocolate Is A Staple Right?

I forgot to blog about this yummy treat way back in August. Jillian went to the Barnes & Noble in San Diego right at midnight when the book, "Breaking Dawn" came out. They had a costume party etc. She knew I would have loved to be there with her and my sister, but of course I couldn't be, so she brought home yummy Godiva for me. I didn't open that baby for over a month. Can you believe it?! I told Jillian that when I finally decided to eat it, I would share some with her. Ummm....I did NOT share. I'm a bad mamma. I ate the whole thing and loved every bit. Eek! I'll make it up to her by taking her to the, "Twilight" movie the first night that it's out. Wanna come with us?

We read all 4 books over the summer. Which one was the best? My personal opinion was that Eclipse was the best. Which one was the least exciting? Twilight. Again, my personal opinion. The other 2 were good and you have to read them all to get the whole story. If you like discussions on the book, "Breaking Dawn" and the Twilight saga, you can check out the one from Mormon Mommy Wars back in August.
Here is the link.

Has anyone read, "The Host" also written by Stephenie Meyer? I heard one review that it wasn't as good as the person thought, but does anyone else have an opinion? Should I spend the money on it as a Christmas gift for Jillian?

Trick or Treat

This was Ava's first year to dress up for Trick or Treating. She loves "The Bee Movie", so since I already had a bee costume, she was a bzzzzing bee :)

My camera is still messed up, so Jillian used hers to take some shots. Ava is very much like a buzzing bee and doesn't sit still. So these shots are the best we could get. She had cute little antenna's on her head, but they kept flipping back, so it was hard to get them in the photos. Ugh. Plus she ate a sucker before she left (to keep her occupied so that I could put her costume on), so her hair and hands were sticky even before we left to trick or treat.

I love how The Munsters was on t.v. in the backround. Perfect for Halloween!

Geesh! Excuse the druggy look on my face in the background. Or maybe I just look evil. I'm not very photogenic.

Since the time change isn't until tonight, it was VERY bright outside when we first left to Trick or Treat. But that was good since there were so many trick or treaters to watch out for on the roads.

All tuckerd out (and stickier of course) on the way home. She fell asleep early after all this fun, so I'm sure she had a good time. :)

I didn't get any photo's of the other kids because Jillian didn't take any. Oops. Poor Brycen had a fever, so he missed his class Halloween party PLUS all the trick or treating. I knew he MUST be sick if he didn't want to get candy. We tried to get the other kids to carry his bucket, but people aren't so nice when they think they are being cheated. Poor Brycen. He did sit with me in the car all cuddled up in his blanket while the other kids trick or treated. Not really much fun for him, but there wasn't much we could do about it. The other kids shared a bit (reluctantly of course), so he won't have an empty candy bucket.

You can see in the following picture...he was looking a little out of it, poor kid.

I have one last picture, but it's a bit scary, so get the kids out of the room....-hee hee-...................

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Jillian wanted to be a dead prom date. Scary! Even Ava couldn't keep her eyes off of her. I never used to let my kids be scary things for Halloween. Now that they are older, I guess I have decided to let them decide for themselves (within reason of course). Jillian is in the SADD group at school, so she says she wanted to look like she got hit by a drunk driver on prom night. She had a SADD message with a heart shape on her chest. Ok...I guess I can't complain about the scary part when at least she has meaning behind it right? Hmmm.

P.S......Today is my niece Christi's birthday! Hope you had an awesome day girlie!