Category Archives: Review

December 5, 2016 · 6:42 pm

Maximize Your Kitchen Storage #Giveaway

Right now, my home is under construction in a few areas, one is my kitchen. I literally have had to remove everything in my cabinets and kitchen in order to get ready for the demo that is going to begin there. Having all my cabinets empty is so strange. I should take a photo because it is a rare thing. Normally, I think of ways to maximize storage of my plastic containers, pot lids, spices and more.

Are you looking for ways to organize, condense and maximize your storage space? If so, I just discovered some great products from YouCopia.

I knew I had to have the StoraStack because I really need to organize my food storage containers. I used to spend so much time digging around the drawer looking for the right lid.

The StoraStack smartly organizes food containers in your kitchen drawer. Two clip dispensers can be positioned as needed to hold two container stacks in place. Individual slots keep matching lids upright so everything stays tidy and easy to find.

My next issue was pot lids sliding around in my roll outs. That is why I like the StoreMore Lid Holder.

The StoreMore Lid Holder organizes all of your pot and pan lids in the cabinet or pantry. Strong wire dividers can be adjusted to keep lids upright, separated and easy to retrieve. Save space and reduce clutter by storing lids vertically!

Last issue for me was how to deal with all the spices I have. I have so many spices that the built in spice cabinet is not enough. I ended up using 2 cabinets to store them all. The problem is that smaller spices get lost and so when I saw the spice steps, I knew I had to try them.

The 24-bottle SpiceSteps™ is the easiest, most affordable way to organize spices in the kitchen cabinet. Maximize space with four tiers instead of the standard three. Label the bottle caps with included stickers to quickly find spices.

Would you like the chance to win a product of your choice from YouCopia? If so, enter the giveaway below and you could win your choice of product from YouCopia up to a $40 value. Good luck!!! Open to US residents.

YouCopia Product Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below. Good Luck!!!

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“Finding Dory”- Another Fish Tale Worth Watching!

My kids love Finding Nemo so when Finding Dory by Disney Pixar arrived on Blu-Ray Combo pack recently, they could not wait to watch it. It did not disappoint, they have a new favorite! They were hooked from start to finish and so was I.

Ellen DeGeneres is the voice of Dory again and this time we meet a very young Dory and her parents who are voiced by Eugene Levy and Diane Keaton. They are trying to help young Dory with her short-term memory loss. We then are taken to the present day where Dory lives with Marlin, a Clownfish voiced by Albert Brooks and his son Nemo.

Dory runs into some trouble when on a fish field trip she has a collision that knocks her out. When she wakes up, she remembers she was separated from her parents and sets off to find them. Just as you would suspect, it does not go as planned and Dory ends up in a Sea World like aquarium program and meets Hank a grumpy octopus voiced by Ed O’Neill who has lost one of his 8 tentacles

The interaction between Dory and Hank makes for great entertainment. There are other new characters like a Beluga whale who keeps thinking his head is swollen and a Whale Shark that has vision problems.

Dory finds out her parents went out into the ocean to find her and since Hank wants to go to an aquarium in Cleveland he helps Dory escape so he can go in her place. Dory does find her parents in the open ocean. It is a good movie and has a nice ending. Movie is approximately 97 minutes long and is rated PG in the US and G in Canada.

Have you seen it yet? If so let me know your thoughts in the comments.

The Smart Weigh To Ship Your Packages! #Giveaway #HolidayGiftGuide

Tis’ the season for sending packages. When you are shipping packages and want to print your labels at home, it is important that you weigh them accurately. If your package weight is off, you will either pay more or risk the package being sent back or sent to your recipient with fees owed.

Some people rely on bathroom scales but they are not made to weigh packages. They also can be highly inaccurate. Do you earn extra income selling on eBay or Amazon? If so, you really need to have something better than a bathroom scale.

I want to share a scale I found to be perfect for all my shipping needs. It is the the Smart Weigh USPS UPS Digital Postal Scale.

This scale is heavy duty and has a weight capacity of 440 lbs. It features a high quality stainless steel platform and has an easy to read LCD display. This scale is great for home or office use.

This scale has some very nice features, use the TARE option to consecutively weigh multiple items, the PCS function accurately gives you a count of items that weigh the same. This scale operates on a 9 Volt battery that is included but it also has a USB cord to use as an additional power source. The scale can display the weight in kg/g/lb/lb:oz and comes with a 2 year warranty.

I was very impressed with this scale, I weighed a variety of items including my kids and my husband, a new vacuum, a 10 lb bag of sugar and more. It was highly accurate and I like that you don’t have to lean over to see the reading. The display is able to be placed eye level or on a counter so that it is easy to read and not obscured by a package.

I have the protective film on still, it is beautiful stainless steel underneath. The OCD is telling me to leave it on so it stays nice. lol

It is easy to operate and has a beautiful gleaming stainless steel platform. We really like the versatility of the USB cable and the high weight capacity. It is really nice to have a shipping scale with a large weight capacity like that. I can even weigh my dogs on it! We think this scale makes a great gift and are adding it to Mommy Ramblings’ 2016 Holiday Gift Guide!

Would you like a chance to win one just like this? If so, enter below through the Rafflecopter widget. Check out all the Smart Weigh products, they have scales for everything!

Giveaway:

Better Basics is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings! One lucky blog reader will win a Smart Weigh USPS UPS Digital Postal Scale. Thank you to Better Basics for the review product and for sponsoring this fantastic giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!! Open to US residents.

Smart Weigh USPS UPS Digital Postal Scale Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below. Good Luck!!!

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12 Comments

Filed under Giveaway, Holiday Gift Guide, Review

Tagged as amazon, eBay, giveaway, Holiday Gift Guide, mommyramblings, pets, Postal Scale, review, Scale, Selling, Shipping, Shipping Scale, Smart Weigh, Weighing

· 5:21 pm

Functional Baskets That Add Beauty to any Decor! #HolidayGiftGuide #Giveaway

I love baskets, they lend such a warm and cozy touch to any room and they are incredibly useful. I like high quality baskets because they are made to last. The craftsmanship of the Peterboro Baskets Co. is something I really appreciate. I have several of their baskets and have collected them for more than a decade. One of my favorites that I always have people commenting about is my coffee basket as shown in this post. That basket is useful and so attractive. Peterboro makes their furniture quality baskets right here in the USA!

I love large baskets, the oversized picnic basket I recently ordered has a hinged wood lid and is perfect for storing a multitude of things. It is also a great picnic basket to take along when you have a big picnic lunch. I can’t wait for summer to use it for packing up our lunch and snacks when we go down to our dock on the lake. I can get everything we need in it and it is easy to carry.

It is also great to store books, toys, yarn, throws, magazines and more. It really works well to keep the things you want at your fingertips in a neat and organized way.

This basket is available in natural, driftwood, cherry or honey stain. I chose the honey and the color is beautiful. You can even make it really special by adding an optional small or large plaque to the front. That would be perfect for celebrating an engagement, wedding, anniversary or more.

Founded in 1854, Peterboro Basket Company is the oldest continuous manufacturer of baskets in the U.S.A. Every basket is one-of-a-kind due to the fact they are made by hand.

We think Peterboro baskets like this and others make great gifts and we are adding them to our 2016 Holiday Gift Guide at Mommy Ramblings! If you would like to have a chance to win one just like this in the color of your choice, enter using the Rafflecopter widget below.

Giveaway:

Peterboro Baskets is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings! One lucky blog reader will win an Oversized Picnic Basket in their color choice! Thank you to Peterboro Baskets for the review basket and for sponsoring this fantastic giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!! Open to US residents.

Peterboro Oversized Picnic Basket Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below. Good Luck!!!

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17 Comments

Filed under Christmas, Giveaway, Holiday Gift Guide, Review

Tagged as giveaway, Holiday Gift Guide, mommyramblings, Peterboro Baskets, Picnic Basket, review

November 29, 2016 · 2:02 pm

Keep The Magic of Santa Alive For Your Child With A Package From Santa!

As a parent I love seeing the excitement in my little one’s eyes at Christmas. Recently I found PackageFromSanta.com and learned that I could have a package sent to my child from the North Pole! The package would be addressed to my child and be full of authentic, Santa Claus goodies that are sure to delight.

You even get a personalized phone call and personalized high quality video staring your child free with every package. There are 3 different packages to choose from! Check out my video of Luke opening his Package From Santa below:

You can learn more about how it works by viewing this video. Right now you can take 25% off your order when you use the promo code RED1816 at check out on PackageFromSanta.com. Hurry offer ends December 15th!

After Luke opened his package, we made the Coca and he looked everything over again. For the rest of the day he showed the stuff to everyone and he is especially proud that he has a piece of Santa’s Magic Suit. He has asked everyone to feel how soft and warm it is. He is really treasuring everything and cannot wait to spread the Reindeer food out on the lawn Christmas Eve!

Limited Time Free Bonus!
Keep your child behaving during the hectic (and sugar laden) days leading up to Christmas with a personalized, high-quality, printable 100% FREE Nice-List Guide from Santa Claus. Includes your child’s photo, name, and top 10 behaviors needed to stay on Santa’s Nice List! Personalize your child’s Nice-List Guide here www.freenicelistguide.com It only takes 60 seconds… nothing to buy, now or ever. 🙂 I am making these for my kids so they know how to stay on the Nice List!

You can follow PackageFromSanta.com on Facebook and Twitter. Let me know what you think of this, just leave me a comment.

This is a sponsored post and I received a product to facilitate my article.

2 Comments

Filed under Christmas, Holiday, Holiday Gift Guide, Mommy Ramblings, Review

Tagged as Christmas, Free Stuff, Holiday Gift Guide, Mommy Ramblings, Package From Santa, Promo Code

November 28, 2016 · 8:09 pm

The Best Way To Cook A Hearty Beef Stew #EmileHenry #Giveaway #HolidayGiftGuide

As soon as the cold weather hits, I immediately start thinking of stews and soups. They are such comfort foods that warm your body and heart. I cook for an army and found that some types of cookware were not good at cooking everything evenly without burning. That is when I discovered Flame ceramic last year when I used my Emile Henry round stewpot for the first time cooking Pasta Fagioli.

That round stewpot is one of my favorite cooking pieces so I was thrilled to try out the oval 6.3 qt stewpot for my beef stew. You can see a video of me preparing this stew below:

The benefits of Flame ceramic is that it provides for slow, even cooking which brings out the flavors in your food. The lid is designed to make sure the flavored condensation circulates inside thanks to the dots underneath. The stewpots are made to be used on all types of stove tops, even induction with the addition of an induction disk. They also work in the oven and are dishwasher safe for easy clean up. Their color remains as beautiful and vibrant as ever through all that!

All Emile Henry products are made in France and come with a ten year warranty! We love the Emile Henry Stewpot so much we are adding it to our 2016 Holiday Gift Guide at Mommy Ramblings.

We also have a giveaway below where you can enter for your chance to win an Emile Henry Oval 6.3 qt Stewpot! Be sure and enter our giveaway for a Emile Henry Bread Loaf Baker and Butter Pot!

Giveaway:

Emile Henry is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings! One lucky blog reader will win a 6.3 QT. Emile Henry Stewpot! Thank you to Emile Henry for the review product and for sponsoring this fantastic giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!! Open to US residents.

Emile Henry 6.3 QT Stewpot Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below. Good Luck!!!

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56 Comments

Filed under Christmas, Cooking, Gift, Giveaway, Holiday Gift Guide, Home, Kitchen, Review

Tagged as #HolidayGiftGuide, Beef Stew, Cooking Video, Emile Henry, French Cookware, giveaway, Kitchen, mommyramblings, Stewpot

November 27, 2016 · 12:26 am

Handmade Stuffed Animals Made From Reclaimed Wool in Canada #Giveaway #HolidayGiftGuide

Have you ever felt a stuffed animal so soft you could not stop yourself from touching it over and over? If you have not, you have not been up close and personal with a Cate and Levi’s Stuffed Animal. We recently welcomed a Cate and Levi Handmade Stuffed Bunny into our family. Our bunny is one of a kind because they are all handmade of premium reclaimed wool i Canada, no two are the same! The fun thing is that you never know what your bunny will look like until you open the package. I love the color/pattern combo we were sent.

This bunny reminds me of a bunny my daughter has had since she was very little. I can see how a child would love a bunny like this for life and how it would find its way to a college dorm room just as my oldest daughter’s bunny did. My little kids love this and I do too. It also makes a lovely room accent. We love it so much we are adding it to Mommy Ramblings’ 2016 Holiday Gift Guide.

This bunny is no small fry, it is approximately 22″ in height. The bunny can be hand or machine washed and you can machine dry on low.

Check out my video review of this adorable bunny:

Cate and Levi is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings! One lucky blog reader will win a Cate and Levi Handmade Stuffed Bunny! Thank you to Cate and Levi for the review bunny and for sponsoring this fantastic giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!! Open to US residents.

Cate and Levi Handmade Stuffed Bunny Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below. Good Luck!!!

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7 Comments

Filed under Christmas, Gift, Giveaway, kids, Review, Toys

Tagged as Canada, Cate and Levi, Gifts, giveaway, Handmade Stuffed Bunny, Holiday Gift Guide, Mommy Ramblings, review, toys

November 26, 2016 · 2:42 pm

The Perfect Gift For The New Baby! #HolidayGiftGuide

If you have a baby on your Holiday Gift List, I have an adorable gift suggestion for you! I recently connected with a company called Estella in NYC that has the sweetest organic gifts for baby. Sets that include a hat, lovey security blanket and soft rattle are available in a number of different designs.

I really like the MTA Set since my daughter works with the MTA and this is adorable for any MTA baby!

I also like the Whale Set. See my video unboxing of this great set below:

This set is organic and perfect for summer or water-loving babies. The whale rattle is a winner of the Mom’s Choice Award and The National Parenting Seal of Approval. Everything is handmade n Peru with GOTS certified organic cotton. The rattle is stuffed with polyester filling.

Blanket measures 14″ X 14″. Rattle measure 4”l X 2”w. Hat fits 0-6 months. All machine washable on gentle, dry flat. Gift giving is easy because these sets ship in a gift box.

We are happy to offer our readers a special discount code that will allow you to get 35% off your orders when you shop at Estella now through December 30th. Use Promo Code MR35Off when you checkout! We are also adding these Estella Baby Gift Sets to our 2016 Holiday Gift Guide at Mommy Ramblings!

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think of these adorable sets!

A Building Kit That Teaches Kids About Engineering! #Giveaway #HolidayGiftGuide

My kids are very interested in building things, when I saw the Survive the Quake Engineering Kit, I knew they would love it. I was not wrong, this great kit puts their building skills to the ultimate test. They need to build structures that will survive an earthquake!

Building on the earthquake simulator that simulates quakes in 5 levels of intensity they have to think about what kind of structures will remain standing despite the shaking. The kit comes with 30 plastic building blocks in a variety of shapes and sizes.

I really like all the information that is in the activity book. It talks about engineers who design buildings to withstand earthquakes, the reason earthquakes occur and more.

I think this would be a great kit to have in a classroom as well. My kids really like this and they quickly learned the best way to build buildings that could withstand even a level 5 simulated earthquake.

See our video below:

We like this set so much we are adding it to Mommy Ramblings’ 2016 Holiday Gift Guide. If you think this looks good, you can enter to win one of these kits below.

Giveaway:

Lakeshore Learning is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings! One lucky blog reader will win a Survive the Quake Engineering Kit! Thank you to Lakeshore Learning for the review kit and for sponsoring this fantastic giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!! Open to US residents.

Survive the Quake Engineering Kit Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below. Good Luck!!!

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9 Comments

Filed under Christmas, Gift, Giveaway, Holiday Gift Guide, Review

Tagged as Christmas, Engineering, Engineering Kit, Gifts, Holiday Gift Guide #Giveaway, kids, Lakeshore Learning, mommyramblings, Survive the Quake, toys

November 20, 2016 · 5:01 pm

My Secret For Baking Perfect Bread Loaves Every Time!

Tis’ the season for hearty soups and stews and home-baked bread. I used to have issues baking bread, it just never came out right. Last year, I discovered that when I used a bread cloche I could make the most delicious artisan bread consistently. Baguettes were not a problem any more either and I was turning them out 3 at a time. They disappeared before they were even cool! So I was left with mastering baking the perfect bread loaf. I am happy to report I mastered that and no matter how many I make, they are perfect and delicious every time!

If you are looking for pointers, I can help. I will tell you that I do use bread flour, I add a little more sugar than my recipe calls for and make sure to use fresh, active dry yeast. The recipe I use is easy, it is actually the same recipe I use when I make my round bread in the Emile & Henry Bread Cloche. I do not change a thing, the only thing I do differently, is use the Emile & Henry Bread Loaf Baker.

This is the recipe I use:

3 cups of bread flour

1 cup of warm water (95 degrees F)

2 tsp of salt

2 tsp of granulated sugar

2 tsp of dried baker’s yeast

2 tbsp of milk

In a large bowl mix the bread flour, salt, sugar and dried yeast.

Pour in the warm water and knead for about 2-3 minutes.

Put the covered bowl in a warm place away from drafts to rise for 20 minutes. Uncover the dough and knead to remove the carbon dioxide, form the dough into a loaf. Grease the bread loaf pan with butter and flour and place the loaf of dough into the loaf dish. Cover with the top and let rise for another 45 minutes at room temperature.

Brush a little milk over the top at the end of the rise time and sprinkle with flour.

Bake in a preheated oven of 460 degrees F for 35 minutes and I remove it after a few minutes to a board.

Click on my video below to see me bake a loaf from start to finish.

We have a giveaway for this bread loaf baker and you can enter below. We will also be posting a giveaway for a Emile & Henry Butter Pot and Stewpot so make sure you follow us if you don’t want to miss it. We think Emile & Henry products make great gifts and we will be putting them on our 2016 Holiday Gift Guide.

Emile & Henry is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings! One lucky blog reader will win a Emile & Henry Bread Loaf Baker . Thank you to Emile & Henry for my bread loaf baker and for sponsoring this fantastic giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!! Open to US residents.

Emile & Henry Bread Loaf Baker Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below. Good Luck!!!

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29 Comments

Filed under Baking, Cooking, Giveaway, Holiday Gift Guide, Review

Tagged as baking, Baking Tips, Baking Tutorial, Bread Loaf Baker, cooking, Emile Henry, giveaway, Mommy Ramblings, mommyramblings