Auntie Anne's At- Home Baking Kit Review

I have always loved a warm soft pretzel. They taste so good! I was excited to see that Auntie Anne's made a At-Home Baking kit so I can enjoy pretzels anytime I want. For the last 9 months I have started trying to cook and bake more. I have found a great joy in creating food. When I saw the recipe for pizza using Auntie Anne's Baking Kit I knew I had to try it. My son loves pizza but only if its soft and fluffy. I thought this pizza pretzel recipe would be perfect for him.

Recipe on the side of the box for pizza.

A great coupon for BOGO for Auntie Anne's locations. We have one in our local mall.

All the items included in the kit.

I prepared the yeast pack in warm water and poured the pretzel mixture in another bowl.

After mixing the two ingredients I made it into a dough ball.

All the items I need to make a great pizza.

After I made the dough ball I covered it and sat it in the window to rise. I let it rise for 30 minutes, I did laundry while I waited so it was not time wasted! After it had risen to be very big I twirled it and stretched the dough to make it the shape of my pizza pan. Then I added the pizza sauce, cheese and peperoni. It was really easy to make and I was looking forward to seeing how it turned out.

The pizza turned out perfect! It was just what I expected and more. It was a deep dish soft fluffy pizza that my son devoured! He can be picky about pizza if its over cooked or not the right taste. I loved it too. The pizza crust was so fluffy and a tad sweet. We both ate a few slices each. It was even awesome cold the next day for lunch. I will definitely be buying this again for pizza and to make pretzels. Its a great and frugal way to have a name brand food item at home.

If you like Auntie Anne's pretzels like we do you should "like" them on facebook too. You can sign up for Pretzels Perks to get coupons and discounts. We also follow Auntie Anne's on twitter for updates and more.

Here is a useful Auntie Anne's YouTube video on how to make the perfect pretzel.




*I was not paid or compensated for this post. The opinions in this post are 100% mine and may vary from other opinions. I was provided for a Auntie Anne's At- Home Baking Kit for this review.
I wrote this review while participating in a Blog Friendly PR campaign on behalf of Auntie Annes. I received a sample for my participation, all opinions are my own

Winnie the Pooh DVD Movie Review and Honey Snacks #CouchCritics #Cbias

 I have always loved Winnie the Pooh. I had all sorts of Winnie the Pooh items even up to my teenage years. I loved the silliness and sweetness of all the characters in the 100 acre woods, Pooh being my favorite. As a kid no one wanted to watch it with me, so it was just me and Pooh. Now that I am a mom a was thrilled when I learned that there was going to be a new Winnie the Pooh movie. I had to wait until it arrived on DVD to watch it since my son is a bit too wild for a movie theater setting.

I wanted to rent Winnie the Pooh before purchasing it in case, gasp! my son would not like it and I did not want to be an adult watching Pooh Bear alone. We rented it from RedBox and it was a tough one to locate. I looked at a few Redbox machines while I was in stores I already planned to visit. When I realized the were all out of stock I knew I would need to locate it online and reserve it. It was so easy to do at redbox.com. I wish I would have thought about checking the Redbox facebook page since I would have seen the promo code. I was too excited about seeing Winnie the Pooh with my son and forgot! Next time I rent from Redbox I will check Redbox twitter too since they often have codes to save. It was super simple to reserve it online then pick up in the store. It took less than 2 minutes from button pushing, card swiping and then getting my movie. A huge time saver to reserve it online first.

For my Winnie the Pooh day my son and I went to Walmart to get a Honey Snack to eat while we were watching the movie. Snacks and movies always go great together. We went to Walmart without a plan. This is not the usual way we shop but I thought it would be fun to look at all the products that had honey in it and see if we would find something great.

I was surprised at all the products containing honey. A lot of them we already purchase and a few new ones we want to try. We found cereal, nuts, cookies, crackers and of course honey. I found the cutest Honey Bear container that was a Winnie the Pooh. We had to have it! After shopping around I decided to make a Vanilla Pudding no bake Pie using Honey Graham Crackers topped with Honey.

When we arrived home with our Winne the Pooh DVD and Honey Snack from Walmart we were ready to have a fun afternoon. I first made the pudding, then crushed up the honey graham crackers, put it in a small dish for one for me and one for my son. Then drizzled the top with honey and put in the fridge to set. While we were making our honey snack we had honey on graham crackers by itself, my son got very sticky but he enjoyed every bite. I tried honey on Tyson chicken nuggets and oh my it was good!

While our Honey snack was getting cold I started Winnie the Pooh. My son grabbed his little chair so he could get a good view of the movie. I was very happy to be sharing Winnie the Pooh with my sweet boy! The movie is about Pooh, Piglet, Rabbit, Kanga, Roo, Eeyore and Tigger all set off on an adventure to find Christopher Robin who they all assume had been captured and needs to be rescued. During their quest to find Christopher Robin Pooh Bear gets very hungry, as all Poohs do, and has a Honey fantasy filled with all the honey he can imagine. This part of the movie was my favorite. It had a great honey song and dancing. My son was dancing, clapping and smiling the whole time. While we were watching the movie we enjoyed our Pudding Pie Honey snack. It tasted awesome! It was sweet and honey filled. I had a hard time getting my son to look at me for a picture since he was too busy watching Winnie the Pooh.

In the end Pooh and his friends find Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh realizes that friends are more important than honey. But since his friends love him and know he loves honey the give him a gift of a giant honey pot. The movie was wonderful. Sweet and stayed true to the classic Winnie the Pooh stories. Watching my son enjoying this movie made me remember how much I adored Winnie the Pooh as a kid and that made me tear up!

I am so glad we rented this movie and I will be adding it to our holiday wish list. I know I will not be watching it alone, I will have my own little honey to enjoy it with me!

You can see my Google+ story of my Walmart shopping trip, honey snack creation and movie watching experience by clicking the picture below.

Winne the Pooh Movie Review and Honey Snack #CouchCritics #CBias

*This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All opinions expressed in this post are mine and your experience may vary. #CouchCritics

We Met Tillman the Skateboarding Dog!

Everyone knows how much my son adores DOGS! He doesn't say it he shouts it lol. He is so sweet, he still adores Kitty-Cats but recently dogs have been his favorite thing. I must admit I love it! As a kid I adored dogs. I have great memories of some of the dogs I had growing up. Its tough to have kids and animals but thankfully we are able to have our dog for my son to enjoy. 

We were watching the morning news and saw a story on how the famous Tillman the Skateboarding dog was going to be near our local mall at The Fountains of Roseville. After seeing a preview of the dog and my son getting excited to see him on tv we decided we had to go see in person.

We arrived just in time to grab a free bag of treats for our dog at home from Natural Balance Dog Food and get a good spot right in front. Tillman was here to celebrate the grand opening of Pet Food Express store in Roseville. We went into the store after meeting Tillman and we were impressed with all the cool stuff for dogs. They had cookies, balloons and more for the kids and pets alike! 

My son had a blast seeing Tillman Skateboard and technically its his first celebrity encounter, even if it is a dog!

Gildan and My Stuff Bags Touchdowns for Tuition Sweepstakes

Gildan and My Stuff Bags are Teaming Up to Help Our Nation’s Children in Foster Care with Apparel Essentials. With each purchase of a Gildan college care package, one will be donated to My Stuff Bags.

Apparel company Gildan is donating a care package to My Stuff Bags (www.mystuffbags.org) for every college care package purchased during its Touchdowns for Tuitions Sweepstakes and Instant Win Game which was launched on September 15, 2011 and will run through November 15, 2011.

Gildan’s college care packages include a pullover hoodie, a crew sweatshirt, three T-shirts, a Gildan Bowl T-shirt, a six-pack of underwear (men’s packages only) and a six-pack of socks (2 packages for women only) ― available through the promotional period for $39.99 (a value of approximately $65) at http://gildanonline.com/store/carepackages2011.html. Ideal to cover the basics for any college student, this care package goes the extra mile. For each care package purchased, Gildan will donate a much-needed socks and underwear care package to My Stuff Bags (www.mystuffbags.org), a nonprofit organization providing children under the age of 18 with bags filled with the basics as they navigate through the foster care system and other child welfare agencies.

Your child in college will love to get a package from you full of the essentials to be comfy while studying or doing homework.  Knowing that one will be donated will make you and your college student feel even better!

Gildan launched a Touchdowns for Tuition sweepstakes on September 15 and it runs through November 15. The Grand Prize is a $10,000 college scholarship (regardless of the age of your child) and trip for a family of 4 to the Gildan New Mexico Bowl. Plus, daily prizes (up to 25 a day) are given away and include college care packages. In addition, they have made the college care packages available for purchase at $39 during the sweepstakes period (9/15 – 11/15) and for each one purchased we will donate a socks and underwear care package to My Stuff Bags , which is a nonprofit that helps kids in foster care with the basic necessities as they navigate the child welfare system.

Sweepstakes is open to residents in the continental U.S., the Gildan Touchdowns for Tuition Online Sweepstakes and Instant Win Game will culminate in one family winning a Grand Prize package that includes a college scholarship of up to $10,000 for a child attending college, plus a trip for four to the Gildan New Mexico Bowl including a three-night stay. For the grand prize college scholarship, Gildan will contribute $1,000 for every touchdown scored during the Bowl game, up to a maximum of $10,000. Additional daily instant win prizes will include the Gildan college care packages and discounts that can be applied to online purchases at www.gildanonline.com.

Those interested in registering to win can do so at either www.TouchdownsforTuition.com or on the Touchdowns for Tuition Sweepstakes page hosted on Facebook, at www.facebook.com/gildanonline.  Once registered (providing a name, email and address) entrants can play the instant win game and receive immediate notification as to whether they have won a Gildan college care package.  At least 25 instant-prize winners will be selected each day to receive college care packages. Registrants can enter once a day, for each day that the contest is running. Those who do not win instantly are still entered to win the Grand Prize and will receive discount coupons, as well as a link to purchase care packages for each child attending college.

 I reviewed a few Gildan products and my favorite are the socks. They are very comfy and durable in the washing machine. They did not shrink at all. Plus I love that they have pink toes and heels!


*I was not paid or compensated for this post. The opinions in this post are 100% mine and may vary from other opinions. I was provided for free some Gildan products for sharing this information.

Flash Kids Review and Giveaway

I have talked about it several times here on the blog that JJ is now is Preschool and loving it! I am always amazed at how much he has learned in such a short amount of time. I love to see my kids learning and discovering new things. JJ likes to work in workbooks and spiral note books, anytime he is writing or drawing he is happy. When I discovered Flash Kids I knew he would love them. Flash Kids are workbooks and flashcards developed for Preschool - 6th grade that cover math, reading and language art skills. The workbooks for Preschoolers are colorful yet simple, with easy directions to follow that often times JJ could do it without my help. Love that!




Here are all of the workbooks and flashcards we have been "working" on lately. They are all great and have been used over and over again. Flash Kids also offers items for the Gifted Student, 1st grade - 6th grade.

I recommend these products to anyone hoping to give you child the confidence to learn and refresh their skills. Check them out today! Flash Kids also has great FREE Download activities for your kids.


GIVEAWAY

Win a Pre-School set of workbooks for your little one.

To Enter This Giveaway: 

What is your child's favorite subject to learn?

 *Leave a comment answering the question and be sure to leave your email address if its not public in your Google account*

Extra Entries: Can be done after leaving a comment for mandatory entry. If the extra entry says 1 extra entry leave 1 comment and 2 extra entries leave me 2 comments and so on. 

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-Like our new fan page on Facebook Frugal Family Tree +1

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-Share this giveaway on Twitter or Facebook using the Share Button at the bottom on this post. +1 for each share you do. (can be done once a day) This means you have the chance to get 2 extra entries a day.

-Add our button to your blog and leave a link of where it is located +2 (right hand side) 

*Limited to US residents; 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts November 4, 2011 and ends on November 16, 2011 at midnight PST.  Winner will be emailed and has 48 hours to respond before another winner is selected. I was not paid for this giveaway or post. The opinions on this item are 100% mine and may vary from others. The sponsor is responsible for prize fulfillment.