durhamonthecheap

Monday, April 29, 2013

L'Oreal and Redbook houseparty (at work) - fun stuff to sample and raffle off!

Today was my L'Oreal and Redbook houseparty. The kit that I had received was fantastic; it contained so many good things and plenty of samples to share. I decided to have the party at work because that way we can easily get together without driving too long of a distance.

I had brought some organic juices, made homemade lemon chess pie and raffled off some of the full-size products included like the nail polish, eyeshadow and lip gloss. The sole male colleague brave enough to attend (hooray!) got to take some goodies home for his wife and daughter. He also enjoyed the pie and drinks!

We had a lot of fun looking at the new nail polish colors and raffling off the full size samples of make up and the book included in the kit. The raffle was not so serious and allowed for people to keep exchanging gifts to make sure that everyone was happy with what they ended up getting. Everyone did love the samples included, especially the L'Oreal Revitalift Miracle Blur Cream. People were also excited about getting a subscription to Redbook because several ladies indicated that their subscription had lapsed and this was an ideal time to renew it and keep up on fashion and beauty tips in general!

We even had one male colleague visit and grab some items for his wife and daughter. He got the book as a raffle win and then we entrusted him with selecting some make up for his wife. I hope she likes it.

We had a lot of fun and it was a great way to introduce my colleagues to new products by L'Oreal and the modern Redbook and the topics it covers.Everyone signed up for their subscription and is now awaiting the first issue of Redbook magazine.

Some of the highlights besides the L'Oreal Revitalift Miracle Blur Cream (available on amazon.com here) were the new colors for the L'Oreal Colour Riche Nail Polish. The ladies admired the many shades of red available as well as the nice neutrals. Going back to my initial post here, you can see the variations on shades that were included. I was particularly happy to see that besides the reds and pinks, L'Oreal is now offering blues and grays as well. They make a nice, different shade of neutral that goes well with denim.

The lip glosses also received plenty of attention because they are nice and thick and look like they will last several hours, eliminating the tedious reapplying of lipgloss. I will wait to hear some feedback on the lipgloss from the participants that ended up winning those. Both ladies that ended up winning the eyeshadow were very happy; they really liked the color combination and thought that L'Oreal did a fantastic job combining colors that go well together.

Disclaimer: This party was sponsored in part by Redbook and L'Oreal and both provided samples and products to sample at the party. The opinions expressed in this blog are solely my own and have not been influenced by any third party.

Sambazon smoothies and fruite juices sampling party - Moms Meet

Today, I had my Sambazon sampling party at work thanks for Moms Meet. They provided me with plenty of coupons to try out a variety of these organic, super healthy beverages that contain Acai Berries. I had bought smoothies in vanilla, chocolate and chocolate/almond/coconut flavor as well as fruit juices containing Pomegranate/Blueberry and Yerba Mate/Guaraná. Some of these bottles contain 90 Acai Berries, sure to wake you up and give you energy to burn.

What surprised most of the moms (and one dad present) was how great these things taste. I think everyone approached the Sambazon beverages with caution, expecting the smoothies to taste too healthy. But the comments were along the lines "they really taste like chocolate milk" or "this is just like regular juice". My personal favorite is the smoothie with chocolate, coconut and almond milk and a couple sampled this one at the party and loved it as well.

Sambazon is locally available at Harris Teeter (has about 6 varieties), Walmart (has one kind and charges 7% sales tax rather than the standard 2%) and Food Lion (which is the only location that has the coffee-flavored variety available).

If you go back to this post here from earlier this month, you can see the contents in the fantastic kit as well as more information about what makes Sambazon so special (hint: sustainability is more than just a trendy word to this company!).

Disclaimer: I received coupons and a sampling kit to host a Sambazon sampling party through MomsMeet. The opinions expressed in this blog are solely my own and have not been influenced by Moms Meet or Sambazon.

Now on HULU: All My Children & One Life to Live are back and better than ever!

Rarely being home during the day due to work, I was never able to get into a soap operas that have been

playing on TV. Some soaps, like All my children, has been on for decades. But now, thanks to the Online Network (link), you can enjoy All my children and One life to live on HULU.

cast of All my Children!

The direct link for All my children is here and One life to live is here. Both of these shows will be available starting Midnight on Monday April 29, 2013 and for someone like me, who has little prior insight into these soaps, being able to watch them on HULU is great. If you work out at the gym and carry your smartphone with you to listen to music, you can even watch both of these shows on mobile devices through Hulu+ and iTunes. So no more depending on the weather channel or EPSN that may be set at the gym!

One word of caution (depending on how you are inclined). These shows are now off the regular network channels and so the writers have taken some more liberties in terms of language. The shows, as evidenced by the preview spoiler here for All my children, are definitely more adult themed compared to regular daytime TV and will include more profanity. So you may want to watch out of the kids are home! BTW, if you click on the link for All my children, you can also see the cast do the Harlem Shake!

the younger cast member of All my children!

The cast of all my children includes some new and definitely also some familiar faces, including Debbie Morgan as Dr Angie Hubbard, Julie Barr as Brooke English,Sal Stowers as Cassandra Foster, Eric Nelson as AJ Chandler, Denyse Tontz as Miranda Montgomery, Jordan Lane Price as Celia Fitzgerald, Ryan Bittle as JR Chandler, Eden Riegel as Bianca Montgomery, Cady McClain as Dixie Cooney, Ray MacDonnell as Dr. Joe Martin, David Canary as Adam Chandler, Heather Roop as Jane McIntyre, and Francesca James as Evelyn Johnson.

For One life of live, there is also a brief spoiler here.

And here is an image of the whole cast as well as the younger cast members separate for One Life of Live!

For One Life to Live, the actors forming the mainstay are Corbin Bleu as Jeffery King as well as returning actors Erika Slezak as Victoria Lord Buchanan, Robin Strasser as Dorian Lord, Tuc Watkins as David Vickers, Robert S. Woods as Bo Buchanan, Kassie DePaiva as Blair Cramer, Jerry verDorn as Clint Buchanan, Florencia Lozano as Tea Delgado, Melissa Archer as Natalie Buchanan Banks, Hillary B. Smith as Nora Buchanan, Kelley Missal as Danielle Manning, Josh Kelly as Cutter Wentworth, and Andrew Trischitta as Jack Manning.

One Life to Live still follows the complicated lives of three main families in Llanview, PA. And you can expect the same drama that made soaps such hits on TV. The town may be small, but the characters and their drama are big and enough people in the cast to cause problems with each new episode.

The nice thing is that you can still get your daily does of the soaps that are fresh and better than ever. Making use of the freedom of being off network. Daily shows will be 30 minutes now and each Friday there is recap in case you missed some of the episodes. To underscore that this is not your mother's soap anymore, the guest stars are definitely geared towards a younger audience. The list of starts making guest appearances includes Snoop Lion, Riff Raff, and Nervo.

Disclaimer: I am participating in a campaign from One2One Network and The Online Network. I have not received payment for this post. My participation makes me eligible for a prize drawing. All opinions stated are my own.

Saturday, April 27, 2013

Product review: Goodies Box April 2013 - including a $50 Wine GC and all for $7 total purchasing price!

Today my Goodies box came for April 2013. I was very excited about this one because it does include a $50 GC for nakedwines.com, a website that I had not heard of before for ordering wines from small businesses. North Carolina has seen an increased in the number of vinyards over the last few years and so I am excited to see how the local wines stack up against the small vinyards from other parts of the USA.

Also included in the box were two bars, one with coconut cashew from True Bar. I love coconut and I love cashew, so this bar should be something I can really sink my teeth in. Another bar was from Zone Perfect, the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bar. Sound delicious, but I will have to see whether the cookie dough pressed in a bar is really tasting like cookie dough - I will post an update soon.

This little snack I am particularly excited about sampling, from Olomomo Nuts a sample bag of Righteous Cinnamon Cayenne Almonds. I have been eating from Blue Diamond that Wasabi Soy Almonds because they are wonderfully spicy and the Cinnamon Cayenne Almonds sound spicy and sweet. So this should be an interesting flavor to try and I may have to purchase some more (they could replace Wasabi Soy Almonds as my go to snack!). The next snack was definitely a surprise.

Who know that Green Giant product veggie snack and not just canned or frozen vegetables. Included in this box was a sample bag of Green Giant Sweet Potato Multigrain Chips. The flavor sounds interesting and I hope that these chips do not taste too healthy. While I appreciate that some companies want to take the guilt out of chips, chips are only intended as snack and if you want to eat chips, you should be able to indulge and get that nice guilty pleasure feeling of skipping on a diet and eating something that will not necessarily make the recommended snack list for every nutritionist. So if the flavor is there, I will be happy. But if they taste too healthy, I will definitely reach for my regular potato chips and just eat fewer!

They also included another beverage. This is one of my favorite parts of the Goodies box, you get a new soda or in this case an energy drink to sample. In the April box, it is from Celsius an energy drink with Raspberry, Acai Berries and Green Tea. Very excited about this drink because I am just starting to discover the benefits of Acai Berries and so this will fit right into my current health kick!

The last snack was the first to be gone. Angie's Popcorn Sweet & Salty Kettlecorn combines two of my favorites, a sweet and salty snack and kettlecorn. I love kettlecorn and so that bag made it out of the box in exactly 5 minutes. Because while compiling this list, I kept looking at the wonderful yellow bag and finally decided that life is too short to put work in front of pleasure. So the bag was started while I was finishing up this review!

Product review: New Album "To Be Loved" by Michael Buble

Through One2Onenetwork, I was able to received a free digital download of Michael Buble's new album "To be loved" and I am quite impressed with this latest output by the Canadian singer. What I did not expect, but I am really happy about, is the fact that Michael includes 4 original songs on this album. While the majority of the songs included are classical standards, such as To love somebody, Michael had significant input in songs such as It's a beautiful day or Got it easy.

A couple of the songs are reflections of his relationship with his family, especially his wife, and an assessment of where he feels his life is right now. Quoting Michael: "I wrote Close Your Eyes about my wife and about the power of all the women in my life—my sisters, my mom, my grandma and all women in general. Let’s face it, where would we be without them? I Got It Easy, another original, is basically a song where I count my blessings and is a reminder to me and everyone to appreciate all the good parts of life. I’m a very lucky guy and I never want to forget it."

These songs constitute a nice mix of slow as well as jazzy songs that detail parts of Michael's life. In his own words, Buble says this album "swings big time: it rocks, it’s soulful, it’s happy, sometimes a little sad. It’s romantic, it’s yummy, and it’s heartfelt." I have added this video, which shows Michael doing a song live in the NYC subway. Clearly, this guy can sing and so sit back and enjoy!

If you want to buy the album and get to listen to more of his beautiful voice, it is on sale at amazon.com here for around $13.

If you want to enjoy Michael live or on TV, he will be appearing on Dancing with the Stars on 4-30-13 and on the Ellen DeGeneres show on 5-3-13. So mark your calendars and be the first one to hear the songs from Michael Buble's new album.

Here are the all the songs included on the album and you can tell, it is a great mix of old favorites and his new venture into songwriting. Buble covers songs by the Frank Sinatra, the Bee Gees, Jackson 5, Elvis Presley, Van Morrison, and more. Not only that, but Michael has managed to snag some really interesting helpers for this album. Reese Witherspoon and Brian Adams, just to name two, also make appearances on this album.

1. "You Make Me Feel So Young"

2. "It's a Beautiful Day"

3. "To Love Somebody"

4. "Who's Lovin You"

5. "Something Stupid" (featuring Reese Witherspoon)

6. "Come Dance with Me"

7. "Close Your Eyes"

8. "After All" (featuring Bryan Adams)

9. "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You" (with Naturally 7)

10. "To Be Loved"

11. "You've Got a Friend in Me"

12. "Nevertheless (I'm in Love with You)" (featuring The Puppini Sisters)

13. "I Got It Easy"

14. "Young at Heart"

Several of the songs you may recognize from covers by other artists, including Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?. Michael's version is more upbeat than Rod Stewart's and depending on which mood you are in, you will like his version much better. My favorite song on the album is To Love Somebody. I love the arrangement and I think the beat is just perfect for Michael's voice. It is mellow and jazzy at the same time. My next favorite is probably Come Dance with Me. Overall, the songs are upbeat, jazzy and the voice of Michael Buble is really part of the arrangement.

And here is a clip of Michael doing the Bee Gees favorite "To love somebody" so you can enjoy him without having to wait for the album to download.

Disclaimer: I participated in this campaign for One2One Network. I received a free copy of the album to facilitate my review. By posting, I am eligible for incentives. All opinions stated are my own.

Review: Taco Bell Happier Hour - everyday 2 to 5PM

Taco Bell, the place for all kinds of reasonably priced Mexican Food, has a new plan to draw customers during the relatively slow early PM hours - Happier Hours. Modeled after a similar campaign by Sonic, Taco Bell is selling all medium drinks for $1 during the 2 to 5PM hours Mo through Fr and weekends included. While McDonalds has the standard $1 drinks for soda and iced tea any size/any soda, Taco Bell does include its limeades and slushies.

I went today and grabbed a Cherry Limeade as a treat after doing a bunch of work in the yard. For $1, this is nice little treat at a very affordable price and to be honest - who could no thank you to a Cherry Limeade on a warm Spring day in North Carolina? Certainly not me!

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

P&G sampler program - a nice surprise in the mail from She Speaks

I got a nice surprise from She Speaks today, a sampler package with P&G products, all full size and all products that I can and will use. I am particularly excited about the Covergirl Outlast Double Lipshine in Sheerly Nude and the Tide To Go stick. Both are items that I will regularly use, the Tide To Go stick can be a life saver in the spring and summer when you wear lighter clothes and have a little spill that needs correcting before a forms a permanent stain.

The Olay and Gilette Fusion products I will also use, but I have not tried either one of them and so trying them out will be interesting. So watch this blog for more updates.

Disclaimer: I received a sampler kit from She Speaks in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed on this blog are my own and have not been influenced by She Speaks or any third party.