Family * Travel * Food

Keep track of all things Olympics 2012

    
For those of you following the Olympics this year, I wanted to share these great widgets with you. It is a great tool to help you keep track of what events are going at and what is coming up as well as news, videos and medals. You can share them via your social sites if you please. I know I especially love the first one so I can know when my favorite events are coming up! Enjoy :)

  

Shelly, Mom Files
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Dirt Devil Extreme Cyclonic Quick Vac Review

Hey guys! Last week I received the Dirt Devil Extreme Cyclonic Quick Vac to review. When I brought the box in from my front step I was amazed by how light it was. The vacuum was fully assembled with the exception of the handle. It took me about a minute to install it simply with a screw that was included. I kept picking it up and putting it back down because I have never felt a vacuum that was that light before! Nine pounds surely feels a lot different from the normal nineteen pounds I am used to. The vacuum is very slim and compact. I gave it a spin around the house and I was pleased with how well it sucked up all the dirt from our carpet.

Even my 4 year old gave it a try and it was very easy for him to use. We tested out the hose with the crevice tool to clean under the couch and it worked well. This vacuum was more powerful than I expected for its size. I think this machine is ideal for if you live in a smaller home, apartment, have very little carpet/rugs or if you are very tight on space. My teenagers have already put their name on this vacuum for the downstairs area of our home. They love not having to lug the big vacuum downstairs and it will encourage them to want to vacuum more frequently.

The Dirt Devil Extreme Cyclonic Quick Vac is available online and in-stores at retailers nationwide and retails for $59.99

Disclosure: I received an items from Dirt Devil to review. No other compensation was received and all opinions expressed are my own. 
Shelly, Mom Files
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Four year old boys and shopping

Today I took all 3 kids out to do some back-to-school shopping. We had the stores all mapped out and set time goals. One thing I always do before we leave the house is make sure William is well fed and goes to the bathroom. Everything was set. We headed out. The first few stops were simple because we were literally in and out within minutes. The last stop required us to be in the store for over an hour. Belk had a HUGE clearance sale with tons of merchandise to browse through, so naturally it would take some time. Along the way, the girls would try on a few items and add them to the growing stack. William behaved pretty well and kept picking up random strands of thread from the floor. I usually don't encourage picking things up from the floor but made an exception this time. It was just thread after all.

You can tell that he was getting tired of being in the store so I took him to the boy's department. He then tells me how the store was starting to make him sad. He said he wanted to feel happy again, very dramatically at that. So after the long time spent in the store and the even longer time at the check-out, we finally headed for the exit. Of course all you heard was the loud BEEP BEEP BEEP. We went back to the check-out counter to find out why we were beeping. It turned out from the piles of clothes we bought, there was one ink tag that was not removed. We headed  back to the exit and were successful. We made it out of there! William begged to go home and I gave him his wish. After we were home for about 30 minutes I looked down on the couch and saw this. It was a collection of all the thread my boy picked up throughout the store.
All I could do was laugh. Of course, once he falls asleep tonight, I will turn into the mean mom and throw it away. He might have dislike being in a boring old department store but surely found a way to keep himself occupied!

The last two photos are from a recent visit we had at Monkey Joe's. It is hard to get decent photos when your kid is running wild! It is our new once-a-week spot to go to, especially with how hot it has been. You can't beat all the bouncing, jumping, climbing, sliding and screaming fun! I look forward to when school starts back so we can go on 'Half-price Tuesdays'.


Shelly, Mom Files
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Food Lion Ambassador Shopping Trip & $50 GC Giveaway

**CLOSED**
Hey guys! If you live in an area with a Food Lion grocery store, you might have noticed some changes in some of the stores. They have been updated, making the store look brighter, more inviting and very organized. The shelves are well stocked with a lot of the great name brands you use as well as the Food Lion brand of items including the "My Essentials" line. I received a very generous $150 gift card through Mom Central as a Food Lion Ambassador and got to see how far I could stretch it. I was totally up for the challenge! I made my list and headed to a brand new store that recently opened in my area.
I will say that the first thing I noticed was the gorgeous produce department filled with such beautiful, fresh fruit and vegetables. I pleased with the prices and quality. I did grab some essentials as well as a few extras for some special meals. The prices on the organic items were very fair.  I went up and down each and every aisle and compared prices on both name brands and the store brand. I found that some staple items I buy were a lot cheaper such as sugar, iced tea bags, flour and a lot of the non-grocery, household items. Now the make it or break it part of any store for me is the meat, poultry and seafood department. I was really happy with the prices, especially on beef. I don't buy beef often because it is usually way too expensive. I was so happy to be able to buy enough protein items for almost 2 weeks without feeling like I was going to have to take out a loan to pay for my groceries.

Something that really got me excited is the selection of ethnic food products that they carried. I use certain types of seasonings are very hard to find in my city and I found them there! Not only did they have more than I would ever want, the prices were SO LOW! *happy dance* My overall shopping experience at Food Lion was a wonderful one. I was treated well and felt like everything was very easy to find and I did not feel like the store was cluttered. I also was able to walk out with a very full cart load of groceries and household items and still have a small balance left in my gift card!
Here are some of the great items I received in my Food Lion Ambassador Kit. 
I love the wooden recipe card box that came with a nice set of recipe cards. I asked my teenage daughters to pick something they wanted me to make and surprise, surprise... they picked something sweet. They chose the "World's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies" recipe. I did ask after all!
I purchased almost all of the ingredients in the store brand with the exception of maybe 3 things I already had at home.
I have made many chocolate chip cookies in my lifetime and I have my usual go-to recipe that I have used for years. I decided to try out the Food Lion recipe. I won't lie, I was a bit nervous because I have never made any baked goods with store brand items. Oh my gosh, they came out AMAZING! They were a bit flatter looking than what I am used to but the taste... I can compare it to a local bakery that sells their chocolate chip cookies for $1.29 each! They had a great chew and crispiness at the same time and were not too sweet. I separated the dough and added pecans to one half since the girls like them with just chocolate chips. I absolutely must share this recipe!


What you will need:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 baking soda
2 sticks unsalted butter
1 cup white sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 11.5 ounce bag of chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate)
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (I used 1/2)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees or according to how your oven bakes.
2. Mix flour, salt and baking soda together; set aside
3. Beat butter for 1 minute or until smooth. Add the sugars and beat for another 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and eggs, one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each egg goes in.
4. Reduce speed to low and add the dry ingredients in three portions, mixing until each addition is incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips and nuts.
5. I then chilled the dough for it to firm up and formed them into balls. I baked them on a cookie sheet for about 11 minutes and transferred them to cooling racks.

Apparently my family thought the cookies were an appetizer for dinner! Speaking of dinner....
I made this for dinner the same day I baked the cookies. I bought some fresh rib-eye steaks that I pan seared in my cast iron pan, sauteed mushrooms & onions, homemade garlic mashed red potatoes and some sauteed zuchinni & squash topped with Parmesan cheese. This meal fed my family for only $24. Not bad and you won't be able to get that price at any restaurant!

Giveaway: One lucky Momfiles reader will win a $50 Food Lion gift card. Believe me, you will get a lot with that amount! a Rafflecopter giveaway  

This giveaway is open to US Residents only and winner is only eligible to win one gift card per campaign. Giveaway will end on August 8, 2012. One winner will be chosen at random and contacted by email. You must complete mandatory entry in order to qualify for extra entries. Momfiles is not responsible for any lost or stolen prizes. Good luck!

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central for Food Lion. I received a gift card and product kit to facilitate my review.
Shelly, Mom Files
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Guyanese "Cook-up" Rice Recipe

Today I am sharing a recipe with you all that is a very common Guyanese main/side dish called "cook-up" rice. I think it is one of those meals that you almost always have the ingredients on hand to make and it is very versatile. In all the different West Indian countries this dish is called by different names like rice & peas, peas & rice or pilau. I have always known it to be called cook-up rice and it can be made with any type of rice or beans/legumes. Typically you would use pigeon peas, black eyed peas or red beans.
One of the main ingredients that makes this rice dish so special is the use of coconut milk, herbs and spices. Everyone makes their own version and today I will share mine. Please be aware that my recipes are seldom done in precise measurements so I did my best to estimate to make it easier for you.

Ingredients:

-1 1/2 tbs butter
-1 small onion chopped
-2 cloves garlic minced
-herbs~ You must use dried thyme but can also add anything else you like, both fresh or dried. I also used fresh thyme and cilantro
-hot pepper (optional) You can use scotch bonnet, habanero or wiri wiri pepper but leave it whole.
-1 chicken bullion cube
-1 tsp of Kitchen Bouquet browning sauce (optional)
-Salt, pepper, garlic powder, Creole seasoning and any Spanish style seasoning. I like Badia best
-1 1/2 cups of parboiled rice ( I sometimes use Jasmine)
-1 can of coconut milk
-1 can of your choice of beans rinse and drained (I love red)

Note: you can cook this dish with meat but I prefer it as a side dish.

How to make it:

I melt the butter and saute the onion for a couple minutes. I then add the garlic and hot pepper (leave it whole). Next, I add the can of coconut milk, can of beans, some dried thyme, the bullion cube and the remaining seasoning except the salt. I bring all of that to a boil to dissolve the bullion cube and then add the rice and browning sauce and some water. I then taste for salt and add if needed. At this point (if desired) you can press the whole hot pepper with your cooking spoon to release some heat and flavor. Turn it down to medium/low heat and make sure you have enough water in there for the rice to cook properly. It can take about 20-30 minutes cooking time. Once all the liquid is absorbed, I add some fresh chopped cilantro and toss it around. That's it!

I served it with some wonderful broiled salmon and it was a big hit with the family. You can also serve it with chicken, steak or pork chops. If you want to keep it meat free then you can add salad or roasted veggies on the side. The only thing this meal was missing was some fried plantains. I couldn't find any ripe ones in the store.

I hope you find this recipe simple enough to try it for yourself. If you do try it, please let me know how it turned out! Enjoy :)
Shelly, Mom Files
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Carmex Summer Giveaway

Hey guys! It's been a while since I have gotten to test out some new goodies from Carmex. I just received this cute beach bag and 6 Carmex sticks just in time to replenish our supply. Yes, I said supply. We always keep extra Carmex on hand! Carmex sent us the sticks in all 6 flavors- Original, Strawberry, Cherry, Lime Twist, Vanilla and the brand new Pomegranate.
My oldest daughter immediately called dibs on the Pomegranate and the younger one picked the Vanilla. Looks like the rest of us will have to duke it our over the others. I personally can't get enough of the Original and the Lime Twist. I always wear it under my lip color and sometimes I will wear just Carmex alone. Who needs color when your lips feel soft and smooth anyway? I also really love the convenience of a stick because it can easily fit in my pocket for days I am not carrying a bag. My daughter is already hooked on the new Pomegranate flavor. She has already requested that we look for it in our local stores so she will have some back-up sticks. What can I say, we are a Carmex family. As I write this post, my 4 year old is begging for a new Cherry Carmex.

Just in time for the summer, Carmex is providing us with an extra gift set just for one lucky Momfiles reader to win. You will get the same beach bag and 6 Carmex sticks like I did. Entering is easy, just check out the Rafflecopter widget below.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Giveaway open to US Residents only and will close on August 9, 2012. One winner will be chosen via random.org and contacted via email so be sure to leave a valid email address in the event you win. Be sure to complete mandatory entry in order for extra entries to count. Failure to follow rules will disqualify all entries. Momfiles is not responsible for any lost or stolen prizes. Good luck!

Disclosure: I received a gift set for review purposes and all opinions are 100% my own.
Shelly, Mom Files
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