Written By Mama

Posts Tagged ‘review’

*I received a pair of Bokos to facilitate this review. Regardless, all opinions are 100% my own. Please view my Full Disclosure.*

So about 3 weeks ago, I received a pair of Bokos to review. I love sandals, and with summer quickly approaching, I need to add more of a variety to my collection. I received them about a week before I went to San Antonio, and just knew they’d be part of my wardrobe while at the zoo.
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*I received a Keurig, from Staples, in exchange for my opinion on it. Regardless, all opinions are my own. Please see my Disclosure*

I love coffee and it’s very important to me to have a good coffee maker so I can have my coffee every day. So when I was given the opportunity to review a Keurig, I said yes.

The first thing I noticed about the Keurig® OfficePRO® Single-Cup Commercial Coffee Brewer was the size. It is the exact same size as a regular Keurig Brewer, which was awesome, because it fit on my counter with NO problem. The size makes it perfect for a small office/break room – your employees would totally thank you LOL
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*I received a tent free of charge to facilitate my review. All opinions are 100% my own.*

So a few weeks ago I went camping. With Landon. Alone. Believe it. I don’t think I could have done it without LightSpeed Outdoors though. Seriously. LightSpeed Outdoors sent me a Periapsis 4 to test and review. I have used it twice in the 3 weeks I’ve had it – Yay! I love useful products
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*This post is a sponsored post. I received the Kolcraft Official MLB Umbrella Stroller in exchange for an honest review. Regardless of product compensation, all opininos are my own.*

After Cody passed away, I have tried to do everything possible to keep his spirit alive in my home and heart. Some of the things I do are buying things I know he would like. So when Kolcraft told me that they have Official MLB strollers for review, I was super excited. Cody’s all time favorite team was the Boston Red Sox, I just knew I had to get it. I’ll make Landon a Red Sox fan, if it’s the last thing I do lol
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Kolcraft has been nice enough to offer a giveaway to Written By Mama’s readers. One lucky winner will receive their very own Official MLB Umbrella Stroller! Make sure you check out Written By Mama’s Official MLB Boston Red Sox Umbrella Stroller Review.
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Holy crap y’all. I totally made homemade strawberry jam…and it was GOOD! And I did it by myself. And it was GOOD. And I used a pressure cooker. And my jars didn’t explode! First of all, I want to talk about the product I used to can my jam, a pressure cooker from Fagor. Now, I am completely new at pressure cooking. I have never done anything like this before in my life. Being so new at canning, I was a little nervous at first. When I was researching about canning and pressure cooking, I started getting intimidated by the pressure cooker. I mean, it’s massive, and if done wrong, your jars can explode. Yeah, it’s that scary. BUT DON’T BE SCARED, I DID IT WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS!
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Oh man, yesterday was awesome. I just wish Landon was a little older so he could hold on to this memory forever. Yesterday, Landon, Shaun and I went to see Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! Get The Sillies Out! So much happened yesterday, so I’m just going to start from the beginning from when we first got there.

So we arrived about 45 minutes before the show started. When we walked into the concert hall, we were greeted by tons of ticket-takers. Everyone was really nice and helpful. After we received our tickets, we were told about activities going on, on the 4th floor. So we grabbed hands and hit the elevator. There were props set up for us to take pictures in front of and even games to play. It was a little overwhelming when we first walked in, that I missed the big souvenir shop! There were tons of little tables (and employees walking around) that had blinking lights, posters and more! So we got Landon a flashing light – that he used to beat the crud out of the little boy in front of him, sorry! I also noticed tables set up, just for adults. That’s right, mommy and daddy (or grandma and grandpa) could enjoy a cold one while your kiddos are enjoying the show.
After the pre-show activities we went to find out seats. When we entered the seating area, we were greeted again by another employee. Then again, by 2 more employees, that showed us to our seat.
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Ya know, I really love shopping. I also love trying new things. So when I was given the opportunity to shop for free at Vitacost, and try new things, I was pretty stoked.

When I was searching the site, I found tons of different departments, brands, sales and promotions. It was hard to pick out what I wanted to review. I was finally able to settle on these 4 items:

I received Creative Bioscience 30 Day Diet, Frontier Natural Products Banana Flavor – Alcohol Free, Simply Asia Noodle Bowl – Simply Teriyaki, and Giovanni Tea Tree Triple Treat Shampoo and Conditioner.

The first thing I’m going to talk about is the Creative Bioscience 30 Day Diet. This diet plan is designed to help you lose 1 pound a day everyday for 30 days. Now, I have only been taking this for a week. I have not weighed myself yet and won’t until I go to the doctors tomorrow – with that being said, I don’t know if I’m actually losing weight or not, BUT I have felt an increase in energy. I also notice a decrease in my appetite. I don’t eat as much at each meal. I know everyone is different, but I also haven’t experienced any jitters, crashes or caffeine withdrawals. I will let you know tomorrow, if I’ve lost any weight ***

The next item I got to review is the Frontier Natural Banana Flavoring, which is Alcohol Free! There are a ton of reasons I picked this specific product. One of the main reasons is because it’s alcohol free. Cody was a recovering alcoholic and he was sober for over an entire year when he passed, I couldn’t be more happy. Anyways, off topic…my step-dad is also a recovering alcoholic, so whenever I have the chance, I do my best to keep alcohol out of anything I make. I was doing it for years with Cody so it kinda just stuck…
The other reason I picked it is because I absolutely love banana pancakes, but I don’t always have fresh bananas in the kitchen. This way, on the weekends, I don’t have to rush to the store to grab 1 banana just to make pancakes, I can use the banana flavoring.
I have made pancakes twice now since I received the flavoring. Each time, they’ve been a huge hit. The flavoring kinda smells strong, but the taste is awesome. You can use the flavoring in pretty much anything including, Smoothies, Pancake Mix, Milkshakes and more!***

One of my favorite-ist (is that a real word?) items that I received was the Sesame Teriyaki Simply Asia Noodle Bowl. Not only did it taste absolutely delicious but it was ridiculously easy to make. It’s Vegan, so anyone can eat it – but you can add any meat you want to it, to make that meat-eating man in your life, happy. It’s a win-win. And seriously, it tastes soooo good. If you don’t like Teriyaki, they have a ton of other flavors also.

The last and final product I received and am absolutely & totally in love with is the Giovanni Tea Tree Triple Treat Shampoo and conditioner. For years now I have been using Tea Tree shampoo and conditioner. I have horrible dandruff and hate it. For over a year I was using a very pricey brand of Tea Tree Shampoo & Conditioner. I thought that was the only option I had. Until I saw the Giovanni brand! Just like any other Tea Tree shampoo & conditioner, it leaves my scalp feeling fresh. I love the tingly-ness (is that a real word?) I get when I use it and I love the minty smell.
Giovanni shampoo and conditioner is Cruelty Free (!!!) which really comforts me. If I had to say something…negative about the Giovanni products I received, it would be that it leaves my hair feeling a little dry. I notice that my dandruff is gone, so it’s not making my scalp dry, but my hair is. Of course I use products in my hair, that help bring back the softness.

Overall, I’m completely satisfied with my online shopping trip on Vitacost and I’ll definitely be shopping through them again.

You can sign up for Vitacost by clicking HERE. If you sign up under that link, you get $10 towards your purchase of $30 or more! *ahem* and I also get a $10 credit

The wonderful folks at Vitacost are allowing me to giveaway a Be Fit Box. You can enter my giveaway HERE!

*** These statements have not been approved by the FDA. Written By Mama and Vitacost recommend you see a doctor before starting any diet. Written By Mama and Vitacost do not take responsibility for any negative side effects you may experience while using any of these products.

Raise your hand if you love convenience. If you didn’t just raise your hand, clearly you don’t have kids. If you do have kids, then you know the importance of convenience. So when I was introduced to the BubbleBum, an inflatable booster seat, I was so amazed. This booster seat was invented for convenience. It was invented for parents by a parent.

BubbleBum was founded by Safekids USA Certified CPST Grainne Kelly from Northern Ireland who, like many other parents, was appalled by the lack of car booster seats available from car rental desks even when booked in advance.

Anyways, how about the facts?
BubbleBum is constructed with material similar to life vests. You can purchase it in one of 2 colors, black and purple.
You can seat 3 kids in the backseat, using the BubbleBum Booster Seat.

Seriously, you can deflate it! Once deflated, you can roll it up and put it back into the drawstring bag. Then you can store it in your glove compartment or in the trunk. That’s definitely a space saver.

Okay, now onto what I think of the product:
When I first received my BubbleBum I was excited. Really excited. I remember growing up and my booster seat was made from a very hard styrofoam. So the idea of something comfortable, for Landon, was really exciting.
Anyways, so I pulled everything out and started reading the instruction manual. Yeah, I’m mom enough to admit I read the instructions lol
Anyways, after reading the instructions, I went ahead and blew up my BubbleBum. When I said it’s inflatable, I wasn’t kidding. You really do blow it up! It’s really easy though. I thought it was going to be hard, because let’s face it, using your breath to blow things up, sucks. It wasn’t difficult at all though. I think it took me 20-ish seconds to do this.

I know, it’s a horrible picture with the glare from the sun :-/

There are a few things I love about the BubbleBum. The first thing I love, and helps make this booster seat super safe is the belt positioning clips.

The Belt Positioning clip are constructed of high press metal and ABS. These positioning clips hold the lap portion of the belt low down on the child’s lap and away from the soft tissue of the abdomen.

Remember earlier, when I mentioned the kind of booster seat I had? Well it didn’t have belt positioning clips. It’s amazing to see how safety has changed in such a short time (because I’m really young, get it? lol)

The other thing I really like about the BubbleBum is the Shoulder Belt Positioning Clip. It helps make sure that the seat belt is properly positioned across your child. It’s adjustable, so it grows with your child’s height. Safety is the most important when it comes to our children, right?

When I was done using the BubbleBum, I went ahead and deflated it to see how easy it was to store. Wow! All you have to do is open the little valve, and roll up the booster seat. Then you put it back in the drawstring bag and store it where you want to store it. In my case, I put it in the back of my blazer.

As much as I love this product, y’all should know that I didn’t drive Landon around on it, because he’s only 2 years old. I did however get to drive my friend’s daughter to the grocery store! She said “It’s more comfortable than the one mom makes me sit on.”

Now something you should know about this product, it’s possibly the most versatile product ever. Here’s why: You can use it in the car, on an airplane, on the bus, you can carry an extra in case you have an unexpected little-guest. It’s easier (and more space efficient) to give grandma the drawstring pouch than it is to transfer over your booster seat.

Okay, so now that I’ve gone on forever about how awesome this is, you’re probably asking about the price. It’s priced around the same as many other backless booster seats! Except is way cooler
The next question you’re probably asking is, where can I buy this?! Well the BubbleBum has just launched at many Target stores! You can find a store near you by using their Store Locator.

If you live in the San Antonio area, here are the local Target’s that are currently selling BubbleBum:
18255 Blanco Rd
San Antonio, TX
78258

11311 Bandera Rd
San Antonio, TX
78250

22832 US Highway 281 N
San Antonio, TX
78258

5355 W Loop 1604 N
San Antonio, TX
78253

The lovely folks at BubbleBum are offering one of my readers the chance at winning their own BubbleBum Inflatable Backless Booster Seat! You can enter my giveaway HERE.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year…so let’s crack open a bottle of wine and celebrate! Written By Mama recently got the chance to review a 2 month subscription to the California Wine Club. Before entering the giveaway, make sure you check out my California Wine Club Reviews Here & Here.

The lovely folks at California Wine Club are allowing me to giveaway a $50 gift certificate to one of my luck readers. You can use this gift certificate as a gift for a friend/family member or keep it for yourself. You can also use it towards any of their monthly subscriptions!

This giveaway is open to legal residents of the United States only, excluding Utah. Sorry, but they’re unable to ship to Utah at this time. You must be 21 years of age or older to enter and win. Good luck!

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