From Carol's Daughter with Love

Those who know my lovely hair, they know there was a time I took such pride in my curly hair. As age stepped in those curls lost their luster, and I went taking hours styling my hair so that I can get that luster back. When i opened my box from Influenster to find out what they wanted me to try, I was so excited. It was like they picked the product just for me. Either their automated calculator was getting more accurate, or they really did pick products from Target they thought I would love.

When you look at the simple tube of styling cream, you see at the very top "Made with Love". Who can say in mass produced products can say that they really do make their products with love? Lisa Price can! She started as a vendor at a fair, and listened. With her process of caring for those who are interested in her products, she has made a line of items that would not only sell but also make her customer happy. Having many friends who are vendors at fairs, her story is an inspiration to not give up and be willing to change.


I look forward to filling my hair with more love, and seeing what else Lisa has. The cream gives life back to my curls in a natural non-sticky way, since it fights damage and frizz with natural products. In short, it leaves my hair feeling loved.

Thank you Target and Influenster, and most of all thank you Lisa. Your an inspiration to women and my hair.

Let's Talk about Bums!

Yes.... lets talk about bums. There are big ones and small ones. Round ones and flat ones. They are all special to the person they are attached to. And since, we all have them. It seemed like no surprise to come to a point when we have to talk about..... YOUR BUM!

CrowdTap and Cottonelle gave me a chance to try the wipes, and let you know how this whole thing work. Being someone who has always been shy talking about bathroom visits, I was surprised how excited I was when given the chance to try disposable moist wipes. There wasn't a disappointment once I got them. 

The dispenser for the wipes is extremely stylish and sturdy. Making this a great item with any style of bathroom that is able to be used over and over. The clothes aren't overly fragrancy and just enough moist to remove anything to toilet paper didn't grab. 

Give it a try! You won't regret it. It is like having a dubai in a box. 

Go-go Awesomesauce

On the go, want something sweet, and healthy? This is a dilemma that my daughter and I are always facing with the go to answer being candy bars and soda. Yep, not so healthy. And since I believe we have all been in the same position, I wanted to make sure you know about this fun way of getting at least one of your daily fruits. 

GoGo Squeez have nothing artificial, allergy friendly and no messy extra. Each serving is 60 calories,  zero sodium and fat, and only 12 grams of sugar. And since it comes in it's own togo pouch, it is available in a pinch.

I know this seems like a treat just for kids, but my teenager just can't get enough. So next time you visit the store, grab a box and see how easy being healthy is. I know my house is happy Smiley360 gave us a chance to try it. 

Click here for a $.75 coupon~~~

http://smiley360.com/2207824.cfm

Kashi's Hummus Chips?

Hummus Chips? Who doesn't love hummus? And who doesn't love the treat of chips? But wait... both of them in the same thing? Yes, the crafty people of Kashi have a new chip made of hummus. As Kashi's goal to continually make healthy food items that taste great. Kashi Hummus Crisp lived up to their standards. 

The chips given to me by Bzzagent was a treat to be had. I brought them to my parent's home for an afternoon of sharing and relaxing. The chips found themselves passed around quite rapidly as everyone just couldn't get enough. The downfall would be the bag wasn't big enough! 

A few weeks later, V and I got to enjoy trying the Tomato, Basil, and Feta Crisps from a sample in our Goodies box. We found these filled with favor and crispy yumminess. 

As for healthy, you will find them made with Chickpeas, Tapioca Starch and Kashi's special seven whole grain special as the main ingredients. In a serving of 27 chips, the calories are 120 and fat at 3.5 grams. The only concern is the amount of sodium is the same as an average potato chip at 190 mg. These are also not Gluten Free and do contain soy and milk for those of you have allergies. 

I did receive the Kashi Hummus Crisps free from bzzagent to try and review. 

Purex Fels-Naptha All Stain Fighter

When Purex gave me the option to review the Purex Fels-naptha, I wasn't so sure as to how to use such an item. It's a bar, not a spray or small stick. 

I found this new concept an adventure that was being started with my favorite white shirt. This shirt  was one of my favorite shirts that you could wear for any occasion and feel comfortable. The hardest part was the grease stain that layed right were my chest is. A grease stain that refused to be moved by any other kind of stain fighter I have tried. Once I had my shirt under the water to scrub just a little on, I found the stain already starting to work it's way out. After a good wash and dry, it was like having a new shirt. 

The next magic trick was a t-shirt that had been worn during a Color Run 5k. Not only was the shirt filled with powder paint, but sweat from the long run and sun. Many parts no longer looked like the beautiful colors they were when I was running. I truly believed there was no way to get out of all the stains, but the desire to keep the t-shirt for memories sake was greater. And so i started scrubbing the shirt, and tossed it in the wash.

I found Fels-naptha really did the job. The only major concern was big jobs. The bar was easier to use, but time consuming where spraying is faster. The fact that it really does break down stains makes it the go to though. 

Thank you Purex for giving me the opportunity to try this item. http://www.purex.com/

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Aveeno and how "volume" isn't a five letter word

Volume isn't something a fine, curly haired person usually goes for in shampoos. This usually leads to five letter words frizz and fluff, but it was a treat to feel my hair after trying the Aveeno Nourish and Dandruff Control Shampoo and Conditioner. I started trying this for Smiley 360's trial campaign in hopes to help with a mild flaking and itching issue. Though, I found my hair had a nice volume and shine about it. This is because Aveeno is made of Pyrithione Zinc to fight the dry scalp with a special Active Naturals Nourishing Oat Complex that leaves the hair conditioned.

There was one small downside of hair snapping off when brushing my finger through after two weeks of use. This was quickly remedied by a reminder of a gem from an old hairdresser. When i was using a more harsh dandruff shampoo to fight dandruff, she told me that dandruff shampoo for fine hair needs to be in portion. When using it to fight dandruff, it shouldn't be longer then two weeks as it weakens the hair. For up keep of flakes, use it once or twice at most a month. This will help with build up that cause flakes and help with a healthy scalp.

With this in mind, I can confidently say this is staying in the bathroom. It helps with the flakes, is a great way to fight build up, and it leaves my hair with shine and .... volume.

My Weekend with Lifeway Kefir

FRIDAY: Healthy Eating

We first found each other in the dairy section of the grocery store. He was right next to the yogurt. And after checking him out (read the label), it was decided that we should try to meet up. He promised me a healthier life in a new tasty way. I had heard this all before from other healthy food, so I told him that he had this weekend to show me that he is the one.  

Friday, he showed that breakfast will never be the same. My cereal was so much yummier. The thickness of the kefir makes the cereal denser and richer. With all that flavor and texture, there was no longer a need to eat a lot. Kefir helped cut my calories. I feel he would make oatmeal heavenly.

A dear friend strolled by to meet my friend. She knew all about him and informed me that next time grab the vanilla Greek style that he is sexy over a bowl of strawberries or any bowl of fruits for that matter. I will have to try that soon, since it is berry season.

Kefir, also, showed that he can easily replace his brother yogurt in my favorite workout mango, peach, banana shake. And though he knew I was starting to warm up, he showed that he was a great substitute for any yogurt blended smoothly in his either refrigerated or frozen form.

He left Friday leaving me know that my mornings will never be the same. Well, except for coffee. He really didn't

mix well with coffee, which is fine since he is supposed to be more part of the main dish then my creamer.

SATURDAY: Pampering yourself

Kefir came over ready to show how much he loves to pamper me. With a basket full of fruits, he informed me that we are going to have a little fun seeing if we can take the idea of replacing yogurt in a face mask and hair mask. It really was easy and stopping to spoil myself was nice.

Face Mask

• Banana
• 1 and ½ Tbls spoon honey
• ¼ cup Lifeway Kefir

1.      Place all ingredients in a bowl and with a fork mash and blend together. Do this tell they are a smooth blend and no lumps.

2.      Before placing on the skin, make sure to wash your face so the benefits of the mask can soak into clean skin. Pull hair up so it is out of the way.  Then scope out of the bowl and spread all over the face being careful around the eyes.

3.      Let it sit for 10 minutes and rinse off with your face wash and warm water tell completely gone.

Hair Mask

• Half a Mango
• Banana
• ¼ cup of Lifeway Kefir
• Tbls Coconut Oil (or any healthy oil)

Cut mango into chunks smaller than an inch, and place in a food processor. Add the banana in inch chunks and the kefir. Process tell the mix is smooth. Then place the oil and blend again.

When done, scope out and place in hair tell the head is fully saturated and pin back with a clip. Let this sit for 15 minutes. Then wash out completely. This might take a couple washings as the food did take a bit to get out.

SUNDAY: Kefir Sunday

He had already won me over, but he said we needed to do something to celebrate. When I opened the door, he was holding some chocolate syrup, gum drops, and a frozen Lifeway Kefir in strawberry. He smiles his big grin and said, “Let’s have a Sunday on Sunday.”

A Lifeway Kefir Sunday is the frozen desert all the same benefits for the liquid kefir and any other type of toppings that you like. With all the sugar, this will probably reverse the health value. Kefir showed me that his frozen version was good enough to serve in any style that ice cream could be. He became my sweet treat from there on.

He left that night knowing we will see each other again. I must say Kefir is such a versatile asset that he will have to make more visits then just on the weekends. With his 11 different probiotics and great flavor, there will always be space in my refrigerator and freezer for him.

Lifeway Kefir was given to me by Influenster to try, review and inform you about it. I did not get paid for this review.