Schick Hydro® 5 Groomer Sampling

I so rarely get to directly include my husband in campaigns that I get.  Usually he benefits from the stuff I get to try, but this time it was all him.  Crowdtap sent a free Schick Hydro 5 Groomer for my husband to try and I think this one is a winner.

The Schick Hydro 5 Groomer can shave, hydrate, edge, and trim all in one. It has a Power Trimmer and Adjustable Trim Comb with 3 adjustable settings so that you can trim to the length you want.  The razor cartridge has a hydrating gel reservoir and 5 blades for a ultra smooth shave. Of course this razor can use any Schick Hydro refills.

It is a great razor and did a great job on my husband's face.  I want to know where the female version of this is.

The Great American Slow Cooker Book

I like to cook. And to be honest, I like to eat.  What I don't enjoy is the clean up involved after having cooked a terrific meal.  So like so many people I know, I thought cooking in a crockpot would be a great idea. My grandmother gave me one a few years back. I used it a few times and then stuck in a cabinet. Typical I know.  Recently I've thought about dusting it off and putting it to use.  But what to make in it? That is why I decided to give The Great American Slow Cooker Book a try.

As a member of Blogging for Books, I am given a chance to read books and review them.  While thumbing through their selection I came across The Great American Slow Cooker Book by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough.  I thought is was kismet. I wanted to use the crockpot and here was a book that promised "500 easy recipes for every day and every machine".  And that leads me to this review.

The book is quiet large with about 500 pages of recipes.  I like how the recipes are set up. Easy to understand and the charts that show how the recipes vary for different sized cookers is so helpful.  There are helpful tips and tidbits in the "Tester's Notes", "All-American Know-How" and "Ingredients Explained" sections after most of the recipes.  The book is immense and has recipes of every variety. From chicken to beans. From pork to puddings.  There is even a vegetarian section. Some of the recipes sound quite yummy while some of the recipes I wouldn't even fathom trying.

The book is great. My only problem with it is it didn't live up to my expectations.  With wording like "500 easy recipes for every day"  I was expecting simpler foods. I was expecting like crockpot potato soup and a few different varieties of easy macaroni and cheese.  Instead there are recipes like "Rabbit with whiskey and lima beans" and "osso buco with coffee and chiles". I wanted recipes that used ingredients that I always have on hand. Unfortunately that is not what this book contains. Don't get me wrong. This book has some amazing sounding recipes that most likely produce delicious food.  But not for me. I need simpler (and cheaper) foods.  There are a few breakfast/desserts that I'm going to try.

Would I recommend this book? Definitely. It was a well written book full of great recipes. Just not what I was looking for. 

More Info..

Author Bio

**"I received this book for free from Blogging for Books for this review."**

Snuggle Scent Boosters

All hail the Snuggle Scent Boosters!  Want your laundry smelling better and fresher for longer? Just throw in a Snuggle Scent Booster at the beginning of the wash and you are all set.  I don't generally use "scent boosting" products because I figure that is what the detergent, fabric softener, and fabric sheets are for; however, this product was decent.

So easy to use. Scent boosters is a little pouch that you throw in the washer, then load in your clothes.  That's it.  I had no problems with this product. It dissolved like it was suppose to. No residue on my clothes, no pouch stuck to my clothes or washer drum.  My clothes came out smelling great.  My husband hasn't even complained that they smell too strong, so it seems to be a nice scent but not overly so.

Snuggle Scent Boosters come in two scents: Lavender Joy and Blue Iris Bliss. I got to try the Lavender Joy. Very nice scent. I am quite curious as to what the other scent smells like. These are reported safe for use in standard and HE washers (though I can only say for certain that it worked well in my standard washer). The price for scent boosters is reasonable. At Walmart it is about $4 for a 26 count.  I would recommend this product. So go out and buy some today.
 Click me to go to Smiley360 Snuggle!

*I was given this product free to try by Smiley360.com. The opinions in this blog are my own.*

Venus Snap VoxBox

I was chosen to receive a wonderful VoxBox from Influenster recently. In this magical box was the Venus Snap with Embrace.

I have to admit when I first pulled the Venus Snap out of its package I scoffed at it. "How could something this small be comfortable to shave with?" I thought to myself.  I didn't think there was any way that the Snap was going to a good product to use. I felt like a giant holding it. The handle was so short.

Regardless of my reservations, I did try the Venus Snap. And you know what, I LOVE it. I've been a Shick user my whole life, but I may actually switch now to Venus products.  I know the Venus Snap is suppose to be a razor for "on the go" but the handle was so comfortable for me to hold. The razor with it's 5 "curve hugging blades" and "water activated ribbon of moisture" gave me a wonderfully smooth shaving without any nicks. No blood drawn at all. :) That is a win in my book. 

I definitely recommend the Venus Snap with Embrace for anyone who wants a razor for on the go...or for anyone who just loves the mini size and comfort of the handle. Venus also offers other full size razors such as the Venus Embrace Sensitive for sensitive skin and the Venus & Olay to help moisturize the skin.

*I received the Venus Snap free from Influenster to try. I was not paid for the review and my opinions are my own*

Herbal Essences Body Wash Sampling

I love to try out different kinds of body washes so I was very excited to be chosen for the Crowdtap sponsored Herbal Essences Body Wash Sampling. As a participant of this sampling I was sent a free 1.2 FL OZ bottle of Herbal Essences Body Wash Hello Hydration with coconut extract.

I like Herbal Essences products, but I wasn't a big fan of this body wash because of the scent.  It lathered up nicely and my skin felt good after using this product, but the scent just wasn't for me.  Hello Hydration smells kind of sun tan lotion to me.  It must be the coconut (which I'm not a fan of).  

Luckily Herbal Essences Body Wash comes in other scents for those that don't want their shower to smell like a day at the beach. The other scents are Body Burst (citrus scent), Happy Go Lather (rose scent),  Honey, I smell Good(infused with honey and apricot), and Totally Twisted (berry scented).

Herbal Essences Body Washes are available at various retailers including Walmart, so go pick up a bottle yourself and see how great they are.

Team Viva® Vantage* Sampling

Not all paper towels are created equal. I am a fan of Bounty which is why I was interested and glad to be pick for the Team Viva Vantage Sampling campaign from Crowdtap.  As a member of Crowdtap I was sent 4 rolls of Viva Vantage Paper Towels to try for free and to share with my family and friends. 

This sample share came just in time because I have a new puppy named Molly.  Like most puppies Molly likes to make messes in the house.  So these paper towels were definitely put to the test.  They are quite absorbent. Miss Molly decided to move her water dish and spill water all over the floor. The Viva Vantage paper towels cleaned up the water pretty good.  My mom also spilled about 16 oz. of water on her kitchen table and she used them to clean up. Said they worked pretty good.

These paper towels scrub pretty good as well. They have a rough texture which makes cleaning up messes easy.  On the other hand the rough texture makes these paper towels a bad substitute for a napkin.  A bit too rough for mouth wiping.

All in all, these paper towels are pretty good. I will probably stick to using Bounty but I was quite impressed by Viva.

Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day

http://smiley360.com/2883914.cfm

As a member of Smiley360.com I was recently selected to try a Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day Countertop Spray.  I was sent a full size bottle of Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day spray in the Lemon Verbana scent to try for free.  

I am always interested in trying natural cleaning products because I hate the smell of harsh chemical sprays.  So when given the chance to try a Mrs. Meyer's product I jumped at it.  The cleaner cleans pretty good for a natural spray. And it certainly smells better than chemical sprays. I am not too fond of the scent but that is just because it is not a particular scent that I would choose for my kitchen. Others might enjoy it.

Luckily for me, Mrs. Meyer's sprays come in a variety of scents. These scents include Basil, Lavender, Geranium, Sunflower, Rosemary, Bluebell, Honeysuckle, and Radish (I am quite curious to how that would smell.)  At about $3.99 for a bottle, they are decently priced as well.

There are tons of other kinds of products available in this Clean Day line. Glass cleaner, dish soap, and surface wipes, to name a few.  So if you are looking for a great line of natural cleaning products you should try the Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day products.