Whirligig Bug

It's fall. It's lovely. The leaves are changing colors, the air is crisp but the sun is warm on your face. Pumpkins and apples are being harvested and it's candy corn season! I LOVE Candy Corn!

As we all know, every year retail stores seem to display seasonal candy and merchandise way earlier than we want. Back to school items are showing up in July, Halloween and Thanksgiving items in August, and Christmas items before Halloween! Well, every year, i see my first bag of candy corn and resist purchasing it because I know it's "early." I did the same thing this season until my co-worker broke down and bough a bag. We polished it off in a day, so I had to replace his crop. I bought the big bag and I think we polished that bag off in two days. After that, my addiction calmed down, or my body was so overloaded with sugar, the craving for candy corn ceased.

While strolling the aisles of the grocery store, I noticed what I like to call "special edition" candy corn flavors. I was amazed and in awe. I had to have them ALL! There were three different flavors, and they came in these cute square plastic tubs. I bought one of each and the taste test began at work.

The three flavors are made by Brach's, which is the candy corn I prefer to eat. I will eat any other brand, but I feel that Brach's is by far the best. They are: Caramel Apple, Caramel and Chocolate Caramel. The chocolate caramel is by far the best, not only because of its flavor, but because of its softness and texture. I'd pick the caramel apple next because it does taste like a caramel apple and finally, the caramel. But in the end, I prefer the classic orange, yellow and white candy corn.

Posted by Kari at 10:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was introduced to Seche Dry Fast Top Coat when my friend painted my nails a month ago. I think this is one of the best top coats on the market! The smell is somewhat strong (which could be because of my hormone levels due to pregnancy) but it is so shiny for days on end! I say days because I have natural nails so a good polish job will last 4-5 days for me, not weeks like faux nails. It seems to wear very well, still staying shiny when I take it off to re-polish.

Seche Dry Fast Top Coat is available at Sally Beauty Supply stores for about $8 a bottle. I highly recommend you pick up a bottle the next time you are out. 

Posted by Kari at 10:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Some early morning or late evening I caught an infomercial about the Shark Steam Mop. Instantly I was fascinated with this mop and had to have one. (Effective infomercial!) I held on and waited to see how much it was. I don't think I saw the price and my husband wanted me to change the channel. I was convinced I had to have this mop so one day I did some searching online.

I checked Bed Bath and Beyond because I always have a 20% off coupon from the store. The mops were about $99 and I thought that seemed terribly overpriced. I already had a mop, and mine as working fine, I really wasn't in the market to get a mop I needed but wanted. Then I began to review the mop and read all the pros and cons about it, thanks to the internet.

I posted something on my Facebook page asking my friends if they had one and what they thought about it. Every comment was very positive, so I was almost certain I had to have one of these mops. 

On a whim, I was at Costco, picking up a bag of dog food and friend that works there directed me to the mop aisle where I found the Shark Steam Mop for $69. I snatched one up and went home to try it out.

When I got home, I was in no mood to thoroughly clean. So I just put my steam mop together and poured in some water (yes, a touch of tap water, not the distilled water like the instructions recommended) and started mopping a small section of my floor. My floor was nasty, covered with dog hair and dried dog drool, and it came clean very quickly.

This past weekend I was able to pick up a gallon of distilled water and thoroughly clean my floors and this is what I have to say about my new Shark Steam Mop:

- Almost every review I read on the internet seems true.

- Some people say it is hard to push. I agree. It was hard to push with a dry mat, but I wet the mat first, and the mop was much easier to push. A wet mat was a suggestion I read on a forum.

- The handle is very flimsy and lots of people complained about it breaking the first time they used it. I can see this being possible, you just have to be careful about how hard you push it. I found straight, back and forth motions worked best for me, plus, the mat was wet, so it is much easier to push. 

- The lack of an on/off switch on the body of the mop stinks. You always have to unplug the mop in order for it to shutoff. 

- As for getting things clean, it seemed to take a little longer to get heavily soiled areas clean (dry dog drool sticks to a floor like gum!) I had to pass over the area several times and apply some pressure. 

- The floor didn't look any cleaner than when I used my Swiffer Wet Jet. But it felt cleaner when you walked on it with bare feet. Even my husband thought this was true.

Overall, I'm in love with my new mop! The pads are machine washable, and I haven't washed them yet, but I have five different pads to wash and dry and change as I mop. And I never have to buy cleaning products, just distilled water to keep my mop running its best!

Posted by Kari at 11:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I used to chew my finger nails. All the way to the skin. In high school I tried to stop and the only way I could was to polish my finger nails. I polished my nails every night before bed. And every day at school, I would pick all of the polish off of my nails. But I didn't bite them! Eventually I quit biting and picking and was somewhat blessed with nice finger nails. Now people comment on how great my nails look and they are amazed they are real and that I do them myself!

Along the way, I tried several nail treatments and systems: I started with Mary Kay's multiple step system, used OPI's Nail Envy, Nail Tek products and finally settled on Sally Hansen's Maximum Growth base coat.

The directions say to use this product daily. I always have it on my bare finger nails. If I am wearing polish, it is my base coat. I rarely reapply to polished nails, but every few days I will re-apply to my bare nails. I swear by this product. And you can buy it almost anywhere! It's affordable and I think, one of the best on the market!

Posted by Kari at 02:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last week I was helping a friend register for her wedding at Bed Bath and Beyond. As I was scanning through the kitchen gadgets, checking off my mental list....potato masher, apple corer, peeler, slotted spoon...I was disappointed in the products the store was carrying. I kept finding myself saying, "Pampered Chef has a better one." This leads me to share my favorite Pampered Chef items with all of you.

Item# 2460 Corn Butterer $3.50

The Corn Butterer is a must for anyone who loves corn on the cob. It's so easy to use. Put a 1/2 stick of butter in the gadget, and watch melted butter slide across your hot ear of corn! The best part, it has a lid, so when you are done using it, you can toss it in the fridge for the next time!

Item #2455 Corn Cob Knobs $4.00

I always remember having something similar to these corn cob knobs when I was a kid. We always used them because the corn was too hot to hold onto with our hands. But they were sharp sticks that jabbed into the corn, and often fell out! My favorite part about these knobs is not that they screw into the cob, but that you put them on the raw ears of corn before you boil them in the water! That's right, you put them on, boil them and then take them directly from the pot to the plate!

Item #1642 All-Purpose Spreader $4.00

I think I have about six or eight of the All-Purpose Spreaders from Pampered Chef. I use them every day for peanut butter, butter, mayo, hummus anything that needs to be spread. I use them more than a table knife! They are nice and wide, and hold lots of peanut butter for my english muffins!

Item #2415 The Corer $10.50

It may seem like a lot of money to spend on an apple corer, but the great thing about the Pampered Chef corer is the "core ejector" that easily removes the core from the cylinder into the trash or compost pile! 

Item #2230 Classic Batter Bowl $15.00

I've always loved using glass. I prefer glass to store left overs in and when I came across this batter bowl, I had to have it. I use it all the time to make homemade brownies (that's right, brownies from scratch, the kind  you have to melt unsweetened chocolate for.) I can toss this bowl in the fridge and keep the lid on it to chill items, I can boil water and mix jello in this bowl and easily pour the jello into a glass dish because of the spout! I then toss it in the dish washer and it's clean.

Cook's Corer (currently in the Pampered Chef outlet section)
Replaced by Item #1176 Core and More $10.50

The cook's corer must be an old classic gadget I have because it is now in the outlet section and has been replaced by a two ended tool called the Core & More. I use this tool mostly for strawberries, to remove the tops. It's very quick and easy. Not like the "pinch" removers my mom used to have. They were basically a giant pair of tweezers she used to remove the tops of strawberries. This tool allows you to scoop off the top.

These are just a few of my favorite Pampered Chef gadgets that I feel are worth the money. Kitchen gadgets are like tools...when you purchase them, they are an investment, and you hope to keep and use them for a long time.

Posted by Kari at 08:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I have unconditional love for Candy Corn. Some of you may recall my entry about the "New Crop" last fall. If not, you can read it here. The other day while shopping for groceries, I rounded the aisle and was bombarded with all sorts of Easter candy. As I began to stroll by, refusing to pay for overpriced specially colored M&Ms, holiday wrapped Reece's Peanut Butter Cups and Robin Eggs, I spotted a bag of pastel candy corn. At first I noticed the name, then the candy and the last and best thing, the brand - Brach's! Brach's candy corn is my favorite! 

I was skeptical of this candy corn, the size and shape was exactly the same, but somehow the flavor had to be altered due to the candy's lack of the tri-color look. It wasn't the standard yellow and orange with the white tip, but instead had a pastel bottom and white body and tip! I grabbed the bag and then put it back on the shelf. I grabbed the bag again and tossed it into my cart.

I took the bag of candy corn to work with me on Monday. (It sat unopened for an entire day in my kitchen, serious will power on my end!) A coworker and I share the love of this halloween treat. He was also skeptical of the flavor due to the change in color. I boke open the bag and we began our critical discussion about the flavor. I thought the corn tasted the same and was delicious. My coworker insisted it tasted different. I told him it was all in his head. He later agreed with me. it probably was all in his head. He didn't think it could taste the same if it didn't look the same!

So here I am, three days into the new Spring Crop and I'm ready to replenish our stock for next week! 

Posted by Kari at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A staple every person should have in their kitchen pantry is Fruit-Fresh. Fruit-Fresh is used for two things in my house, to keep apples from turning brown and to keep avocados/guacamole from turning brown.

Fruit trays with apples can be easily prepared the night before. Slice apples, place into a seal-able bag, add Fruit-Fresh (I don't measure). Toss the bag to mix the Fruit-Fresh onto the apple slices. Refrigerate bag of apples and place on your serving tray the next day. The apples will not brown! I like to cut my fruit the day before not only to save time, but I think the apple slices with Fruit-Fresh on them taste better the next day. The apple juices allow the Fruit-Fresh to dissolve, eliminating the grainy texture that is sometimes on the apple slice. (This texture is only noticeable by me, I think I freak out that someone will suspect I've used Fruit-Fresh to keep my apples brown! I have asked my husband if he notices a difference in texture and he says no.)

I know what you are thinking: Lemon juice will do the same thing, true, but I don't like lemon and whenever I eat an apple coated with lemon juice, I can always taste lemon! Fruit-Fresh never leaves a flavor or alters the flavor.

You can add 2 tablespoons of Fruit-Fresh to a cup of avocado and it won't brown overnight in your fridge. This works great for fresh guacamole that will still taste good the next day. 

There are several other uses of Fruit-Fresh including baking, canning and freezing. Check their website or the package information for details!

The trickiest part is finding Fruit-Fresh. It is usually located with the canning items at your local supermarket. I picked mine up at the hardware store right next to the mason jars! I don't know how anyone can survive without this fabulous product!

Posted by Kari at 01:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I absolutely L O V E my Pampered Chef Glazed Rectangle Baker. It's a 9 x 13 stoneware pan that is coated with an off white glaze. I use this pan for everything: chicken, lasagna, pork but mostly for brownies. Last night, it broke in half.

I was terribly upset when I opened the oven door to check the doneness of my pork tenderloin. There I saw my pan had cracked in half. Thankfully I had my marinated tenderloin wrapped in foil, so nothing leaked out of the pan onto the oven!

But this is the second time this has happened. The first pan was cooking chicken Parmesan about two years ago. I had to buy another pan because the three year warranty had just expired a month earlier!

I'm a touch happier now that I have found my receipt and realize my current broken pan is under warranty! I've emailed my consultant and hope to have another pan within a few weeks. But this makes me wonder, is there something out there better than Pampered Chef Stoneware? My favorite feature of this pan is that it keeps foods hot for a very long time and it is extremely easy to clean. Minimal scrubbing, if any, and the pan is nice and deep.

If anyone knows of a better product, or something similar, let me know in the comments section below. I'm always up for new things.

Posted by Kari at 08:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've had the Egg Perfect Eggtimer in my drawer of kitchen gadgets for a few years. I have never forgotten to use this gadget when I make hard boiled eggs. It's about the size of an egg, made of plastic and gets placed directly in your pan of water with the eggs you want to boil. As the water begins to boil the timer will darken as the eggs cook. The longer the eggs cook, the darker the timer gets and eventually you'll have hard boiled eggs (or soft or medium, whichever you prefer).

This gadget has worked perfectly for me every time. Even when I forget about the eggs, I check the timer and voila! They are done! I've never undercooked an egg and I have never overcooked an egg. 

My mom gave me this timer for Christmas one year, so I'm not sure where it came from. You can google the name and lots of listings will appear. I found a similar one here. I think I've seen them at Bed Bath and Beyond and at Meijer!

Get one of these! It will be one of your best kitchen gadget investment! You just have to remember to use it!

Posted by Kari at 12:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Lately I've been obsessed with reading the fine print. I see it flash across the bottom of the television screen during commercials and I zone in on the text at the bottom and struggle to read it before the screen changes. When I do read the fine print, I feel like I've mastered all of the gimmicky infomercials and "know their secret". Here are a few of my observations.

Commercial For: Nutrisystem (www.nutrisystem.com)
What they say: Save $55 per week on groceries! That's over $600 a year with the Nutrisystem plan!
Fine Print: The price of Nutrisystem does not include the fresh groceries that are a requirement for the plan
What I say: You can easily spend $55 a week on fresh fruits and vegetables that need to be added to the plan!

Product: Maxwell House Coffee
What the package says: 1 serving of water is 6 ozs.
What I say: Who on earth drinks 6 ozs of coffee as a serving! I don't think you can even get a 6 oz cup of coffee at a gas station, even the Starbucks coffee "Tall" starts at a 12 oz cup. 

Product & Commercial for: Any weight loss pill, drink or bar
What they say: This item will help you lose weight and fast!
Fine Print: Results not typical, individuals are remunerated.
What I say: Remunerated = Paid. If anyone paid me to lose weight, I would lose it!

Posted by Kari at 06:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

"Wait for the noodle," I tell myself as I approach my vehicle in the morning and open the door to get in. I try to tell myself this every time I get into my new truck. Yes, I am officially a trick driver. Dan has my car, I have our new truck to drive back and forth to work. A savings plan since his commute is so much father than mine, and his 1995 Dodge Dually with $325,000+ miles on it no longer has 3rd gear, so it was time for a new vehicle.

We purchased a 2005 Dodge Ram (of course) 2500 quad cab truck. It's red and big. I'm still getting used to parking it. I can get into the parking spot, but I never pull up close enough to the other vehicle. Thankfully it doesn't have a full size bed. I would hit every curb in sight.  As for the noodle, It's a diesel, so you have to warm it up before starting it, which means you have to wait for the "noodle" light to turn off before turning the key all the way. I've forgotten twice, but as long as I keep telling myself to wait for the noodle, I'm all set.

Posted by Kari at 02:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I recently attended a Premier Designs Jewelry party. It was your standard at home party: a blurb about this, a blurb about that, chatter here, chatter there, catalogs, chocolate martinis, wine, food, and go home happy. We've all been to them. And they are fun to go to and I think it's always nice to buy at least one thing to help out not only the hostess, who is also helping out the consultant. But, at this party, something very different happened. It happened so quickly it made me stop and really think.

I was listening to the consultant tell about the jewelry as I was flipping through the catalog and sipping my martini when she said, "All of the jewelry is made in the USA." I was amazed. I almost asked her to say that again. Was she serious? Is that possible? I started to take a better look at the catalog.

Then I heard, "Premier Designs is a debt-free company." I thought to myself, "Debt-free company, what is that? I've never heard of that. Does that mean the government doesn't ever have to bail you out?" It was explained to me as this: The consultant gets 50% of the profits, the host gets 30% and the company (Premier Designs) gets 20%. After Premier Designs pays its bills and employees, any left over money is donated to ministries and missionary families across the globe. I found this fact fascinating. It made me want to buy more!

Four hours, three pieces of jewelry and two chocolate martinis later, I was back home still thinking about this company. I wanted to share it with my husband, but he was already in bed, since it was after 11 on a weeknight! Sorry if we hung out to late at your house Amy, it was lots of fun and next time I won't stay so late on a school night! 

If you are interested in hosting a show or purchasing jewelry, please contact Lynn Kofahl through the Premier Designs website, or email me for more information kstrohs@hotmail.com.

Posted by Kari at 10:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)