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3 Great Valentine’s Day Deals On Amazon

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With Valentine’s Day quickly approaching, I decided to peruse Amazon to find gift ideas for my loved ones this year. The selection of gifts for Valentine’s Day is pretty awesome. Here are just a few gift ideas that I would like to share.

First, is a product called Organic Seaweed Facial Kit. It’s made by Black Bird Botanics and distributed by Custom Global Product. It’s a perfect gift to give to any women who likes to pamper herself with organic products for the face. There’s a detailed list of all organic products used in the description. It comes with a seaweed toner, seaweed lotion, seaweed masque and a face wash. This is a nice gift if your love one likes to go to the spa!

The second find was a product called the St. Valentine’s Day Cupid with Arrow Large Cookie cutter, made by Fussy Pup. It measures 6×6, made in USA and is made from heavyweight copper. This cookie cutter is great because it allows you to make a HUGE cookie for your loved one.

Beautiful 14K Gold Locket
Beautiful 14K Gold Locket

Lastly, I found this really beautiful locket on Amazon. It is a 14k Yellow Gold-Filled Engraved Four-Picture Heart Locket with a 20″ chain. They also carry it in sterling silver. You can add up four special pictures of the people you love to this beautiful locket necklace — perfect gift idea for a mom.

Happy Valentine’s Day!!!

Posted by Eve

Tip for Saving Money on Cheese

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My family and I absolutely LOVE cheese of all kinds, but it can be expensive to keep the fridge stocked. Here is a tip for saving money on cheese in the future.

When you purchase shredded cheese in a bag, the manufacturer charges you for that convenience. Also, the manufacturer puts additives in the bag to preserve the cheese and to keep it from clumping. So I have come up with an easy way to shred your cheese yourself, with little effort — whether it’s mozzarella, provolone or cheddar cheese for tacos.

All grocery store chains and wholesale clubs give you an option of buying the cheese in a block instead of the shredded cheese. Next time, choose the block cheese and follow these simple steps.

1- Place the cheese in the freezer for 15-30 minutes
2- Use a cheese shredder or a large grater to shred the entire block

* Now here is the secret to the cheese not clumping*
3- In a large container with a lid or a zip lock bag, add shredded cheese and put 1 Tablespoon of flour on top of the cheese. Secure lid or bag and shake vigorously. Make sure to store your cheese in an air tight container when done.

You will be amazed at how much more cheese you’ll get from that one block compared to a shredded bag of cheese that you buy at the store!

Posted by Lorraine

Tips for How to Deal with Finicky Cats

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Over the years, I have had the pleasure of loving a few finicky cats in my home. Each cat had their own unique personality. I, of course, had to adjust to meet their individual criteria. Here are a couple of frustrating issues that I had to contend with and how I solved them.

Don’t Litter Where You Eat…

My first cat, Colors, was so picky at eating her food! I soon realized that it was because I had placed her food too close to her litter box. Duh, who likes to eat their food near where they relieve themselves? I know I don’t. So I made sure that her food was in a totally different room than her litter. That immediately solved that issue.

Clumping Litter Saves the Day…

My next cat, Millie, would urinate and defecate right outside of her litter box, on a daily basis. I was becoming very frustrated. I did not know what was causing this to happen. I first tried cleaning the litter box before I went to work. That didn’t help at all. I then decided to change the litter brand from non-clumping to clumping. I even began to clean her litter box twice a day, before work and before I went to bed. From the first day I began this new routine her bad habit had been broken.

Sleep in Your Own Bed Please!

Cat bed
Cat bed.

My other cat, Lucky, would never sleep in his cat bed. I would always awake to him sleeping in my bed. I decided that my scent must be bringing him comfort. So, I decided to put an old t-shirt of mine in his cat bed to see if that helped. Wow, it sure did! From there on he slept in his cat bed.

I guess what I am saying here is to be patient with your animal and use common sense when your animal has odd or strange behaviors. They will let you know what you are doing wrong, the best way that they can. It’s up to you to listen and pay attention!

Posted by Eve

A Holiday Tip if You’re on a Budget

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Here’s a simple holiday tip that saves me a lot of money every year. It actually benefits my wallet the year after the purchase: buy all of your Christmas stuff in January.

One year, I was browsing in my local pharmacy and found incredible sales on all remaining Christmas items. I mean everything you can think of. For example, holiday lights, wreaths, wrapping paper, figurines, tinsel, stocking stuffers, candy canes etc…. They were all at least 40% to 75% off the original price. You can basically cover 2 to 3 Christmases at once. I quickly filled my cart!

My last purchase was a large storage bin with a lid to keep my items organized and stale free for the next year. It has now become my after the holiday ritual.

Posted by Eve

Tips for How to Make Grocery Shopping Quick and Easy

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I use to spend most of my Saturdays shopping for groceries. I was so tired when I got back home that I did not even want to take the groceries into the house. So, I came up with a plan that drastically cut much of my shopping time, by at least 60%. EUREKA!!!

First, I never leave home without a shopping list. I first look through my pantry to see what I am lacking.

Next, I research all of my local grocery circulars to locate the best sale on those items. Then on a piece of paper, I put the store names on top (no more than three or four) and proceed to write down what I need from each store.

To make my experience even less time consuming, I write my list of needs according to each store’s layout. For example, I begin in the deli then proceed directly to the fruits and vegetables, so on and so forth. More importantly, I avoid that aisles that I don’t need to walk down, which saves massive time and money.

My last stop (if needed at that store) is to visit the freezer section. Finally, I proceed to check out and then I am off to the next store.

Each store should take no more than 15-20 minutes of shopping time if planned out correctly. Hopefully, by following my tips, you will be amazed at how much time you have left to enjoy your day and relax!

Posted by Eve

Best Gifts for the Grumpy Old Men on Your List

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While there are no guarantees that any gift will please a “mean and surly” loved one, here are a few gift ideas for the grumpy old men on your list that are probably your best bets.

We all have a few “grumpy old men” in our family. They never seem to be happy, no matter what you say or do. They are only mildly amused from time to time. These can be the hardest people to shop for, because you know that whatever gift you decide to give them during the holidays is likely to flop. Increase your chances of success with these simple ideas for the grumpy old man on your list.

Cooked Food

Photo Credit: Flickr; Jonny Hunter
Can’t go wrong with STEAK! Photo Credit: Flickr; Jonny Hunter

Instead of traveling the length of your local mall ten times looking for a gift for your grumpy old man, why not just give him a home cooked gift — a home cooked meal that is. Cook him his favorite meal as a gift, and only make enough for one plate, especially for him. You can’t go wrong with a nice steak dinner complete with potatoes and mac and cheese.

But only give this gift if you’re a really good cook, or else, you will probably never live this gift down. More fuel for the fire. He’ll probably be groaning about that horrible meal you made for years to come!

Massage Chair or Massage Cushion

Massage ChairMaybe the grumpy old man in your life just needs to take a load off in order to shake away all that negative energy. A good massager will do wonders. You can either go with a full massage chair, or just buy the massage cushions that you can lay over your favorite recliner.

He might grumble and toss the gift to the side, but don’t let him get away that easy. Set the massage chair or massage cushion up for him in his favorite chair so that the next time he’s alone, he’s more likely to sit down and enjoy himself! Maybe this will help him lighten up a bit.

A Book on His Favorite Subject

Grumpy old men love to be left alone (or at least that’s what they say), so your gift should center around something that he can enjoy by himself and in silence. You can’t go wrong with a book.

Say your grumpy old man is a fan of historical fiction — get him a new novel set during the times of the American Revolution or the Civil War. They usually love that type of stuff. If he’s into politics, get him a book by his favorite politician or about one of the presidents.

Let’s face it, regardless of what you get a grumpy old man, he’s likely to turn up his nose at it. But these are a few of your best bets, and hey at least you tried!

Posted by Jade