Family * Travel * Food

Pillsbury Ready to Bake! Prize Pack Giveaway

Who loves home-baked cookies? *raises hand* I do! My family appreciates the scent of freshly baked cookies and of course eating them! Pillsbury Ready to Bake! Shape Cookies are ready to enjoy in 8-10 minutes and can be found at your local grocer. It is a convenient way to give your family the home-baked taste they love in the easiest way possible! Right now in time for Easter, you can find your family’s favorite Disney characters including Lightning McQueen from Cars and Minnie Mouse. We bought the Cars version and they came out so cute! The fact that 2 dozen cookies were all eaten within about 36 hours might be a good indication that they were yummy. 


I have one Pillsbury Ready to Bake! Prize pack to give away to one lucky Momfiles reader. The prize pack includes:
~A VIP coupon to purchase a package of Pillsbury Ready to Bake! Shape Cookies 
~Cookie Jar 
~Cookie Spatula 
~Oven Mitt  

Enter in the Rafflecopter widget:
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New fish, Happy kid and the Pet Store Mafia

For William's 4th birthday we purchased him an aquarium. He has a slight obsession with fish so we figured it would be a great thing for him to have. We kept it simple and went with a 10 gallon tank but opted to get the better filtration and lighting system. When we purchased everything to set the tank up, the customer service people at the pet store were very knowledgeable and willing to answer questions and give advice. We always had an aquarium for the girls when they were younger and had great success with it. As a matter of fact, the fish would sometimes get so big that we would have to donate them to the classrooms at the school. We went ahead and started off with all of what we needed to set the tank up and get the water ready to add fish. Back in the day we added fish within 24 hours. Nowadays they recommend 3 weeks! 3 weeks?? Try telling that to a 4 year old!
How happy does he look? 
We went yesterday to purchase some fish and boy was William excited. He made up his own song about going to the pet store to buy some fish. Too funny! We decided on a few glofish in cool, neon colors, a couple "Mickey Mouse"platys and a couple fancy tetras. When I asked the person in that area for help in purchasing the fish he immediately had that "look" on his face. This is how the interrogation... um conversation went...

Fish guy: Do you have your tank set up?
Me: Yes.
FG: Are you sure it is done properly?
Me: Yes
FG: How many fish do you want?
Me: 6
FG: What size is your tank? (At this point he is in my face looking at me like he is a prosecutor or something)
Me: 10 gallons
FG: Hmm, okay. But remember the rules... 1 inch of fish per gallon. Then he stares at me all scary.
Me: Uh, okay

If you could have seen his body language and heard his tone you would have been afraid of even breathing the wrong way. Like the husband says, they are like undercover PETA representatives or something! DANG! I mean come on, they are just fish. If I choose to buy 50 of them then I should be allowed to do so.


In the end, our boy is completely happy and enjoying his new pets. He is so curious and asks a lot questions about his fish. We look forward to adding some more fun friends as time goes on. We might have to rethink where to buy them from so we don't feel like we might catch a beat-down from the pet store mafia! :)
Shelly, Mom Files
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COOL WHIP "What you add makes it" campaign update

Some of you might remember reading a post last month about my trip to New York City for a photo shoot for a campaign with COOL WHIP. This campaign is based on the notion that “what you add makes it.” As a mom, the little things you do, like adding a dollop of COOL WHIP to an otherwise simple cake or pie, turns ordinary into extra special. I am so happy that I was chosen for this campaign just for that reason! Everyone that knows me personally or through my online social networks know that this is all me. I really love the fact that COOL WHIP is doing a campaign using real moms. I'd say that is extra special!

I wanted to share the latest updates with you. If you go to the COOL WHIP Facebook page and click on the "Real Moms" tab you might see a familiar face or two.


I can't even describe what I felt like when I saw this. My family is thrilled and are looking forward to the ad launch in magazines due to hit newsstands in May for June issues. I will be featured in Every Day with Rachael Ray, Food Network, Cooking Light and Parenting Magazine School Years. To say I am excited is truly an understatement! Here is what my actual ad looks like:
You all have to check out one of the featured recipes for Strawberry Pie. It is so simple and does not require a whole lot of ingredients. This is a very impressive dessert and you will have your family and friends raving about it!



Strawberry Pie

Prep Time: 25 min. plus refrigerating | Total Time: 3 hours 25 min. (incl. refrigerating) | Makes: 8 servings.

What You Need:
1 HONEY MAID Graham Pie Crust (6 oz.)
3/4 cup boiling water
1 pkg. (3 oz.) JELL-O Strawberry Flavor Gelatin
1/2 cup ice cubes
1-1/2 cups strawberries, halved
1 pkg. (3.9 oz.) JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding
1 cup milk
2 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

Make It:
POUR milk into medium bowl. Add 1 pkg. (4-serving size) JELL-O Instant Pudding. Beat with wire whisk 2 min. or until well blended. (Mixture will be thick.) Spread onto bottom of crust. Add boiling water to gelatin mix in medium bowl; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved. Add ice; stir until melted. Let stand 5 min. or until slightly thickened. Meanwhile, arrange strawberries in single layer in center of pie. Cover with gelatin. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm. Serve topped with COOL WHIP.

If you try this recipe (or other featured recipes from the Facebook page) please let me know! I would really appreciate your feedback.

Be sure to stay connected on FacebookPinterest and Twitter for great recipe ideas using COOL WHIP.

I am working in partnership with the COOL WHIP brand and I am receiving compensation for my participation in this campaign. All thoughts/opinions are 100% my own.


Shelly, Mom Files
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Char Crust® Dry Rub Review & Giveaway

I received 4 boxes of Char Crust Dry Rub Seasoning in 4 varieties (Roasted Garlic Peppercorn, Ginger Teriyaki, Amazin' Cajun and All American Barbecue) to try out. Since I am a big at-home cook I was very eager to try it out. I decided to go with the All American Barbecue flavor. I really did not know what to expect. I am the type of cook that has an arsenal of seasonings. I literally use about 10-12 items for one dish. I figured I would grab some chicken and see what happens...

I opened the box and it contained a packet of the dry rub seasoning. I poured some onto a plate and pressed my boneless, skinless chicken thighs into the rub and coated them all over. There was a tiny part of me screaming to add some of my own flavors but I quickly shut myself up *ahem*

I had my trusty cast iron griddle heated up and coated the surface with some Canola oil. I added my chicken and let it sizzle for a few minutes. When I flipped them over a tiny bit of panic came over me because I thought I might have burned them! Turns out they were "charred" brown.. very brown! 

I transferred my chicken to a smaller cast iron skillet after browning them and popped them into the oven to be sure they cooked all the way through. I heated the oven to about 400 and cooked them for about 10 minutes. 



Now came the moment of truth. Tasting it. Oh my googlie goo it was so juicy and tender!! The flavor was a perfect blend of 'sweet heat'. I was so surprised and pleased with it and was I ever so happy that I opted to not add anything else. It has a great kick that I noticed intensified when it was reheated. Next time I cook the chicken like that I want some big, fluffy whole wheat rolls and some fresh crunchy veggies to make some sandwiches. I am already planning what types of dishes I will make with the remaining varieties. The great part for a busy mom like me? It was so fast and easy! It was interesting too that these rubs are one of the very few certified Kosher rubs and are low sodium. I was so happy to find out that one of the local butcher shoppes located about 5 minutes from my home carries Char Crust dry rubs! You can see if there are any locations near you here. You can also purchase them directly from the website


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I am so thrilled to be able to host a giveaway for 4 boxes of Char Crust Dry Rub Seasonings for one lucky Momfiles reader to win! 

**To enter (mandatory) just leave a comment telling me which Char Crust variety you want to try. 

For extra entries (leave a separate comment per entry method):
~ "like" Char Crust and Momfiles on Facebook
~ Write on the Momfiles Facebook wall letting me know you entered
~ Follow Momfiles on Twitter 
~ Tweet about this giveaway (once daily) 
Win 4 boxes of #CharCrust Dry Rub @momfiles and make your meats extra juicy! http://tinyurl.com/cprkzgk #food #giveaway
~ Subscribe to Momfiles via email
~ Follow Momfiles on Pinterest 

This giveaway is open to US Residents only and will end on April 7, 2012 at 12:00 AM EST. One winner will be chosen at random. Please leave an email address in your comment if you do not have a Blogger profile. Momfiles is not responsible for any lost or stolen prizes. Good luck! 
I received free products for review purposes and all thoughts/opinions are 100% mine as always.
Shelly, Mom Files
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Mommy anxiety, do you have it?

For weeks now I have been starting posts and then hitting "backspace" and deleting everything I wrote. Anxiety takes over and I walk away from the computer. Is what I am about to write going to offend anyone? Is it interesting or thought provoking? Countless thoughts go through my head and I have to sit down and take a few deep breaths. I start thinking about everything... Am I doing enough with training William to become more independent? Am I giving the girls enough of myself to help them be better women? Am I a good enough wife? What do I cook today? Why have I stopped using coupons? I don't call people often enough. Why am I avoiding certain things? The grass needs to be cut and the house needs repairs. Why on earth am I feeling like backspacing this whole post? Where is all this stupid anxiety coming from anyway? Please pardon how poorly and very randomly written this post is. Maybe I just think too much! My brain needs a vacation :)

Do you suffer from anxiety? What tips can you share?


Shelly, Mom Files
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