New Year, New You - MyMagazine Sharing Network

My most recent MyMagazine Sharing opportunity came last month, but I've been waaay behind in sharing my thoughts on everything! Between post holiday catching up and planning a one year old's birthday party (that got snowed out), I've barely been able to keep my head above water, but I certainly want to share our thoughts on all these great products! 

My kit included

• ONE (1) Sample Pack of Nature Made® Multi Adult Gummies, 2 ct.

My thoughts: I have been taking prenatals for years (from fertility treatments processes, pregnancy, and currently breastfeeding) so I passed these along to my aunt. She liked them - said they had a great flavor. 

• ONE (1) Osteo Bi-Flex® Ease, 7 ct.

My thoughts: This isn't a product that I would normally use, so I passed this along to a neighbor who was very appreciative. 

• ONE (1) Sample of Sensodyne® Rapid Relief Mint Toothpaste

My thoughts: I really like sensodyne products, but for some reason don't buy them very often? I enjoyed it and will definitely buy it 

• ONE (1) 16 Day Trial of Metamucil®

My thoughts: Again, not a product I'd need, but I passed it along to my uncle who uses it every day and couldn't believe I didn't want to try it. He told me all the benefits he sees from the product, and honestly could have been a walking commercial for it! 

• ONE (1) ChapStick® Total Hydration Lip Balm

My thoughts: Nearly had to fight my husband for this one! We both love it and constantly steal it from each other!!

• ONE (1) Sample of One A Day® Nature’s Medley Multivitamin

My thoughts: I have been taking prenatals for years (from fertility treatments processes, pregnancy, and currently breastfeeding) so I passed these along

• ONE (1) Sample of Listerine® Ready! Tabs™, 8 ct.

My thoughts: These were weird. Overall, in a pinch (such as right before a big meeting or may be an interview), I'd definitely use them because they are very effective. But they were not enjoyable at all. 

• ONE (1) $2 Coupon for any ONE (1) Pedialyte® AdvancedCare™ Plus Product

My thoughts: I have purchased the product, but I haven't had to use it yet. Having a toddler at home, I always keep Pedialyte on hand. 

My favorite product was absolutely the chap stick!! Seriously, best chap stick I've ever had! I'm a big fan of making my own because I have a hard time finding something that is moisturizing and lasts more than 10 minutes. This one does it all! Highly recommend! 

While we were given free samples and discounts on products mentioned above, the opinions are our own. 

Kroger Simple Truth Vegan Pizza Crust

I was super excited to get this kit from MyMagazine Sharing network. We love pizza, so this was a super easy product test for us! Our kit included a free pack of 2 vegan pizza crusts, an oven mitt, a pizza cutter and coupons for various toppings.

For our first pizza night, we made a pepperoni pizza and a chicken,  artichoke,  and spinach pizza.

I baked the pepperoni pizza on a cookie sheet and the other directly on the oven rack  The pepperoni pizza crust ended up much softer, while the other turned out very crispy. Both were hits! But my preference was definitely the chicken,  artichoke and spinach.

Since then, we have purchases these crusts two more times. They are soooo good! It's definitely our new favorite! 

While we were given free samples and discounts on products mentioned above, the opinions are our own. 

Dove Dry Shampoo Review

As a member of the MyMagazine Sharing Network, I periodically receive free or reduced cost items to check out and tell you about. Recently, I received a fall beauty kit containing the following items: 

• ONE (1) Sample Pack of Dove Dry Shampoo

• ONE (1) Sample Pack of Garnier® SkinActive® Soothing Facial Mist with Rose Water

• ONE (1) Maybelline® Eyestudio® Master Precise All Day Liquid Mini Eyeliner

• ONE (1) Sample Pack of Love Beauty and Planet™ Shampoo and Conditioner

The first item I tried is the dry shampoo. The following are my opinions on the product. 

As happens, I found myself running late one day and had skipped my shower the night before because, well, I like sleep :) At work, I remembered I had stashed the sample can of Dove Dry Shampoo in my bag so I figured I'd give it a try. I'm a big fan of dry shampoo - totally saves the day when I have a surprise meeting or if I've been dealing with sick baby, pumping, cleaning house, etc. I hadn't tried the Dove brand before though. 

My hair was clearly a bit greasy - perfect to test it out

After a quick spray, massage and brush, here's the result: 

My thoughts? 

I really liked the smell. The coconut lime was a nice change from other dry shampoos. 

It didn't leave any white residue behind, which has happened with other brands

I don't feel like it really absorbed all the oil. It was ok, but had my hair been any oilier, it would not have done the job. 

Overall, I'll finish out this sample can, but I'm not sure I'd purchase it. There are other brands that do a better job and in all honestly, corn starch is my preferred "dry shampoo". 

Kroger Fuel Points Fueling Our Weekends

While I hate that summer has ended, I do enjoy the fall festivals happening all around. This weekend, the weather was gorgeous and we hit the road! Thanks to Kroger and Kroger Fuel Points, all that driving was a little more affordable. Earning fuel points is as easy as grocery shopping. Getting rewarded for doing something you already do is about as easy as it gets!

As a participant in MyMagazine Sharing Network, I sometimes receive free and/or discounted promotion items. For this campaign, I received free fuel points. All opinions expressed above are my own. 

Vitaminwater Active

I received free samples and coupons as part of a MyMagazine Sharing campaign for Vitaminwater Active. The thoughts and opinions expressed below are my own. 

When I first saw the Vitaminwater Active samples and coupons, my first thought was my husband because he is a construction worker and we go through tons of gatorade. So. Much. Gatorade. I let him try the first bottle after work one day. He had the orange mango flavor.

He really liked it, so we went back to try other flavors.

My daughter is six months old, but let's be honest.....I'm not back into my workout routine yet. But, I do drink Body Armor a few days a week to help with staying hydrated because, well, breastfeeding. There are those that swear by blue gatorade or red body armor, or standing on your head while drinking cucumber infused water.....it goes on and on. It comes down to hydration though. I drank the strawberry black cherry variety and it is delicious! The lemon was ok - probably not ever going to be my pick.

Now, my pump bag looks something like this when we're out and about:

During my IVF process, I was considered "high risk" for ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome. One of the nurses told me that if I drank electrolyte beverages along with a high protein diet before and during that whole process, I could alleviate some of the worst symptoms. So last year, I spent nearly three months living on vitaminwater - as in at least three of them a day. And I liked those a lot, but the strawberry vitaminwater active is my new favorite! I still ended up with OHS last year, but even though my ovaries were so big they were touching (OUCH!!!!) I was able to avoid hospitalization and draining of fluid. Obviously, we can't be certain the vitaminwater kept me out of the hospital, but I do think it absolutely helped to balance the electrolytes in my body.

Team Sweet Trail Mix

As part of the MyMagazine Sharing Network, I sometimes receive coupons and/or free product to try from Kroger stores. I recently received a box with a bag of pretzels and a tin of almonds, along with lots of coupons for items to make trail mix. It also came with a challenge: pick your side (sweet or savory) and create a trail mix recipe featuring the Kroger brand ingredients!

The timing on this was perfect as it coincided with a cookout we were hosting on Memorial Day weekend. Picking a side was easy - obviously sweet!

In a bowl, I mixed together:

Pretzels (I had to use gluten free ones because most pretzels contain soybean oil which my daughter can't have and for some reason the only ones that didn't were gluten free)
Marshmallows (Kroger brand)
Peanuts (not Kroger brand because they have soy protein added to them. I have no idea why, but it was very disappointing to see)
Banana chips (broken into pieces)
Raisins
Dairy/Soy free Chocolate Chips
Almonds (Kroger brand - which I received for free)

The trail mix was a huge hit. Half of it was gone before I could snap a pic! It was a great salty/sweet combo and it was all dairy and soy free, which was a bonus for me!


I received free products from MyMagazine Sharing Network and coupons for some of the products mentioned above. The opinions are my own. 

Ripple Pea Protein Milk

Shortly after my daughter was born, we found out she has milk and soy protein intolerance. What does that mean? She can't digest milk and soy proteins, such as whey and casein. I'll spare you the details, but the poor kid was in so much pain until we figured it out. For me, since I'm breastfeeding, I can't have anything with dairy or soy in it because the proteins pass along to her. Fun times. We didn't figure it out until she was a month old, so those first few weeks were ROUGH for all of us. But once we had a diagnosis, we had a game plan going forward. I made the choice to breastfeed so that means I have to watch everything I eat. Let me tell you, dairy and soy are in everything. I have to read labels constantly because things like peanuts can have soy protein in them. Why???? I have no idea. But that was the one time I didn't read a label and we paid for it.

In the beginning, I experimented with lots of different non-dairy "milks". I found that I like different varieties for different purposes. The nut based milks are fairly common so they were my first tries. When I saw the pea protein milk, I was skeptical. I like peas, but I wasn't sure that I wanted to drink them. I started off with the original unsweetened variety. It was not my favorite to drink, but it is definitely my choice to make mashed potatoes with.

Then I tried the chocolate. O.M.G. It tastes like a melted Frosty. For me, it's a bit too sweet to drink straight, so I often dilute it with some unsweetened.

Another thing I like to do with the chocolate is make smoothies. This recipe promotes lactation, but is safe for everyone :)

In the blender, combine:

1 c Ripple Pea Protein Chocolate Milk
1/2 c raspberries
1/3 c oats
1 Tablespoon Flaxseed
1/2 Tablespoon sunflower lecithin (optional)

Blend well until combined. 

Toss in some ice cubes and blend a few more seconds

I received free Ripple Pea Protein Milk from MyMagazine Sharing Network. The opinions expressed above are my own.