Some Great and Not-So-Great Car Decorations!

My husband was driving down the freeway today and he called me up (a total no-no, I realize) as he was driving, talking very animatedly about the Dodge Ram truck driving along beside, behind and in front of him.  First of all, the guy driving this thing was obviously a hunter.  The truck was detailed in camouflage and on the hood was a pair of deer antlers.  


Now, I'm as amused as anyone by a creative looking detail job on a car.  Take a look at some interesting things people do on their cars.  After all, some people spend as much as 5 - 6 hours a day in their cars.  Why not make it a personal expression of individuality?  

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But I think I draw the line at something like these hanging off the tow bar of any truck/car/SUV of mine! This is what was on the back of the aforementioned Dodge Ram!  Notice the red lips on one side and my husband's rearview mirror with his phone reflected in it!

A Cooking Class Adventure

I actually paid money to go to a cooking class this past Saturday!  It cost more than a couple meals at the local 'Cafe Rio' here in Utah Valley.  However, I learned a lot and the food was delicious.  It was driven by Raw Melissa and taught by Jenny Johnson of Delightful Delicacies.  The class was held at Jacob's Cove Heritage Farm, where they specialize in heirloom crops of tomatoes, squash and other seasonal favorites!  We She made Chipotle and Lime Baba Ganoush, Pumpkin Cardamom Rolls, Weeknight Ratatouille and Naked Apple Galette!  I would have to say that the Ganoush was my favorite because it is so good on crackers and who knew that roasted and mashed eggplant could be so delicious?

  A close second was the Weeknight Ratatouille,  with plenty of garlic, onion and roasted green peppers.  

She demonstrated how to make a beautiful herb bouquet or garnier consisting of fresh thyme, rosemary, parsley oregano, basil and bay leaf, which was thrown into the pot to simmer with all the vegetables.

Adding an herb bouquet adds interesting flavor to otherwise mundane flavor mixtures!

  This food was all vegetarian and was so filling and yummy!  I would definitely do this again! 

Bronzed Envy Review and Giveaway Notice!

I love a good tan as well as anyone, but to get it is another story.  I have never been to a tanning salon, never had a air-brush tan and quit laying out in the sun trying to get color on my skin as of 18 years ago.  Frankly, I thought it took too much work and time--time that I wasn't willing to put into getting that golden, tanned look. Plus, as it turns out, it may not be the best thing for you to lay out for hours in the sun or be radiated with infra red and ultra violet light in a tanning booth.  

But wait, there is one option that I am definitely open to, provided it doesn't turn me orange!  That option would be a self-applied tan!  I had a great tanning product 2 years ago, but then the company that made it quit making it!  I couldn't find another product or seem to have the motivation to get into using one regularly.  

When I was presented with the opportunity to review Can Tan, a great new spray-on self-tanner made by Bronzed Envy, I jumped at the chance!  I wasn't disappointed either!  This tanner has a great ability to go on without streaking and without blotchiness!  It also presents with a really great color, very natural, and no orange!  I'm now back on the self tan wagon and just love it!  And what a fun name--Can Tan!  Yes, I can tan!  And you can tan too!  With Bronze Envy! 

Bronzed Envy also has other great products, all with the intent and ability to make your skin look as beautiful and luscious as you could ever imagine!  Go check it out at Bronzed Envy! 

One more thing--Bronzed Envy offers a home business option with this.  There is a huge income potential with vanity the tanning industry! If being an airbrush tanning consultant sounds like you, explore the possibilities here! 

Tropical Traditions Virgin Palm Oil Giveaway!

Congratulations to comment #168, Eve,  who said, "tweet http://api.twitter.com/shopgurl/status/27695338454"

Palm oil is the #1 dietary oil in the world, except for the U.S., where soybean oil is the most widely used oil.  Traditionally, palm oil has been used for baking, shortenings, margarines and deep-fat frying.  It has a long shelf life without being hydrogenated and has zero trans fats!


Today, Malaysia is the Word’s largest producer of oil from palm fruit, although it is native to West Africa. Being an introduced crop to Asia, they are mainly harvested from large plantations. Tropical Traditions Virgin Palm Oil is produced by small-scale family producers in Africa that are certified organic. When you purchase Tropical Traditions, you are supporting the small scale family farmers in Africa and NOT the large, corporate run plantations in Southeast Asia! Read about the history of Virgin Palm Oil here!

 The nutritional and health benefits of palm oil are staggering. It is 15 times richer in beta-carotene than carrot!. 

I wasn't sure that I would like this oil or not but I tried one of the recipes featured on Tropical Traditions using Palm Oil, the 'Orange Coconut Cookies', using orange zest and coconut.  They were SO delicious!  There are also recipes for Chops, Steak, and bread. I'm excited to try all of these and take advantage of the healthful benefits of this great oil!


Right now you can purchase Organic Virgin Palm Oil at Tropical Traditions for half price!
(For first time purchasers, please use the referral code 5954910.  You will receive a complimentary copy of the book 'Virgin Coconut Oil:  How It Has Changed People's Lives And How It Can Change Yours' with your purchase.  This book includes over 85 recipes using coconut oil and research showing the health benefits of coconut oil!)


WIN A JAR of Tropical Traditions Organic Virgin Palm Oil!  Please complete the mandatory entry before you do any of the other entries!  This giveaway is open to US Residents, Canadian Residents, bloggers and non-bloggers. You must be able to have product mailed to a mailing address other than a P.O. Box and must have a valid e-mail address that I do not have to look high and low for.  Good luck!


MANDY: Visit Tropical Traditions and find one recipe that you'd like to try and tell me about it!


EXTRAS:

+2 Visit Tropical Traditions on Facebook and like them! (Leave two separate comments for two entries!)

+3 Grab my 'A Gal Needs...' button on my right sidebar and post it on the main page of your blog!  Leave me your link! (Leave three separate comments for three entries!)


+3 Subscribe to my RSS Feed in a reader of your choice! (Three comments for three entries)

+5 Place an order at http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/ and where it says 'How did you hear of us?' put in this referral code: 5954910

+5 Blog, Stumble or Facebook about this giveaway and tell me where you did by leaving me the link!  (5 entries each method)


+3 Follow me on Twitter! (Three comments for three entries!)


+2 What is the strangest food you ever tried and ended up liking?

+1 Follow Tropical Traditions on Twitter and tweet this..." #Win a jar of @TropTraditions Organic Virgin Palm Oil @Melahelen http://bit.ly/9c8JwF #Giveaway - 10/18/10"  (Can be done 1x daily for one entry each!)  Leave your tweet status!


This giveaway will close on October 18, 2010 at 11:59 MST.  The winner will be chosen through random.org and notified by e-mail.  The winner will have 48 hours to respond!  Thanks for participating and thanks to Tropical Traditions for the chance to review and host this giveaway!  The opinions in this blog are mine and are honest and candid!  I was supplied with product to sample and review!

Learning As I Go On 'Blogger'

About 9 months ago, I discovered the world of Giveaways, Reviews and Social Networking.  I already had a blog that I did just for fun among friends and family and so when I found out how you can integrate a blog, Twitter, Facebook, Stumble, Technorati, Digg and any number of the blogging communities into one great social engine, I was definitely hooked.  I do believe it changed my life trajectory somewhat!
The thing is, I really didn't use a blog mentor or a coach. I just started from scratch and learned and am learning as I go, probably making horrible, glaring, stupid mistakes, but loving it nonetheless.  A couple of things I learned JUST this week are:

• Blogger has Stats that you can look at to see how your blog is doing!. You can get where traffic is coming from, how many page views per hour, day, week, month, etc., what kinds of searches are being done to land someone on your page, etc.  That is so cool.  I knew that you could go to outside sources to get that info but it's so much easier to get it from your own blog source. I'm not sure if I just didn't notice this before or if it's a new feature.  But I like!  Just click on Stats and you will see everything I did!

• I just learned how to disable comments on a certain post.  Say, if I'm done with a giveaway, I can disable more comments from coming in.  (Not sure if I'll use it for that purpose, but very useful to know because you never know when you might need that feature!)  Just go to EDIT POST, click POST OPTIONS, click DON'T ALLOW, SHOW EXISTING! Easy!

• I learned about a great tool for bloggers called screen capture software!  It allows you to capture anything you see on your screen window including windows, menus, full screen, rectangular regions, web pages and even shots of moving images!  Maybe now I can actually capture that tricky Random.org window to show winners of my giveaways!

So another week is upon me and there are surely more things to learn as I make my way through this blog realm, which is surely every bit as captivating and interesting as anything Alice found in Wonderland!  One of these days I will look up how to create my own siggy!  Until then!

 Hugs,
Helena

$10 Target Gift Card Giveaway!

Congratulations to #36, Heart and Soul Cooking, who said:   

 "I commented on #5 Novica - Friend of Beauty And Creativity."

  Thanks to everyone who participated and stay tuned for another Target Giveaway soon!

I know that you love giveaways and I love to host them! But there is something I love even more!  I love comments on my non-giveaway posts!  I do a number of reviews for companies that aren't associated with giveaways.  I only do reviews on companies that I think are worthwhile and have something to offer.  I would love it if you would comment on whether or not you agree with my assessments!  But, I know, we don't all have a lot of time to spend reading reviews when there are so many other things on our plates.  So every once in awhile, I like to encourage extra motivation by giving some incentive in the form of a gift card. This giveaway is open for those who are passing through my blog and are interested!  Hey, every bit helps and I know Target is a great place to shop!
Here is what I need you to do to win this $10 Target Gift Card, which I've already picked out.  It's the  Target Dog!

MANDY:  Choose one or all of the following reviews and comment on one or all of them.  Come back and let me know which ones you commented on in separate comments for each review done.  You need to do at least one of these for anything else to count:
#1 Scrubs--Some Do's And Don'ts
#2 Brookstone--A 45 Year Success Story
#3 Grateful For Grateful Body  
 #4 Myrtle Beach Memories
#5 Novica - Friend of Beauty And Creativity

EXTRAS:
-Follow me on Google Friend or let me know if you do already!
-Tweet about this giveaway for one entry daily, leave me the tweet status!
-Vote for me here on Top Mommy Blogs! (Also can do daily)
-Subscribe to my e-mail updates (on right sidebar)
-Enter my Grateful Body Giveaway! (click on right side bar)
-Enter my Tropical Traditions Giveaway! (on right side bar)

This giveaway is open to US and Canada and will run through September 30th and the winner will be chosen with random.org and contacted with e-mail! The $10 gift card will be sent via certified US Mail as soon as I can get my act together and get it sent! My goal is to have it to you by October 9th!  This giveaway card is my own personal card that I choose to give away!

Novica - Friend Of Creativity And Beauty

I just found out about this great company called Novica, associated with National Geographic! I guess I'm just not with it, because if I were, I'd have known about Novica having been named one of the Hot 100 websites in Dec 2008, carrying right over to now, 2010! Do you love authentic regional artwork?  (Me!) Do you love quality textiles, fabrics, stones and metals made into art from other countries?  (Count me in!) Do you travel just to find wonderful souvenirs and treasures at bargain prices?  (No, but would love to!) Do you love to help others who are struggling to make ends meet?  (Of course!) If the answer is yes to any of these questions, you will love Novica!

As I browsed the site, I found beautiful quality, hand made creations like hammocks to relax in, beautiful leather and suede bags, sweaters made from the finest alpaca wool, truly authentic and beautiful jewelry and more! All of these were made by artisans from places like the Andes, Bali and Java, Brazil, Central America, India, Thailand, Mexico and India. 
Personally, I think Novica makes the world much smaller in terms of bringing the work of small time artisans as well as more prominent international artisans to my doorstep! Beautiful creations from around the world can make me smile, in the comfort of my home, not to mention the great deals!

Some more questions to ponder - Are you the discerning shopper who loves to give great, one-of-a-kind gifts?  Are you part of a corporation who wants to make an impression with the gifts it presents?  Novica has a great corporate gifts section as well as a green gifts category, with items that are eco-friendly, and kind to the planet!
Novica expresses it this way:

We want to give artists and artisans around the world a global platform to express their true artistic talents and to spur their creativity. And, we want to provide you with access to unique, hard-to-find items at great values that only the Internet infrastructure can allow.
At the deepest essence of our philosophy, we want to create a bridge between you and the many talented artisans across the globe.
We want you to know about who you're buying from. We want you to feel that attachment to the product and to the hands that created it.
In the spirit of the Internet, let us bring you together.
NOVICA. The World is Your Market.

Artisans such as César Gonzáles are so grateful for Novica and their artisan loan program, where they give eligible artisans loans with 0% interest!

César Gonzáles

gemstone artisan, Peru

"I give thanks to Novica for the significant change it has made in my life. Before, we were living with a mattress on the floor, and now we have a comfortable and pleasant new home. I'm very happy to have been able to pay for the schooling of my three children and the comfort of my family. Previously, I sold my work on the street. Now, my income has increased three times. I am doing the job I always dreamed of doing, and I love it."

My opinion of Novica is very high!  I love the fact that they give talented artisans around the world a place to express their artistic talents and provide access to the world market!  I consider use of this site a must!

If you  are a first-time purchaser from Novica, you will  receive $10 off your purchase!  Just add this code when you check out!  NOVICA243

Grateful Body Face Trio Giveaway!

Congratulations!  The Winner of The Face Trio is #78, Just Coupons, who said, I Follow Grateful Body on Twitter @Just_Coupons  Thanks all who participated!

As promised, may I present my Grateful Body Giveaway!  First of all, let me say that Grateful Body is 100% Natural and Chemical Free!  That is so important to me and why I feel that if you are serious about taking care of your skin, you NEED to have a product like this!


Grateful Body has been in operation since 1998 and was among the front runners of the natural ingredients movement, making their products so popular today. They promise to bring you the safest, most effective and luxurious products available.

The list of ingredients in each product is very impressive.  For example, in the Normal Skin Moisturizer, you will find:

Pomegranate Extract - this supercritical extract is a renowned antioxidant that promotes skin regeneration, stimulates skin self-repair mechanisms, improves skin elasticity and reduces wrinkles.  Pomegranate offers powerful protection against skin aging, also providing calming and healing properties for skin tissues.

Neroli Hydrosol - Neroli Hydrosol - a dynamic and beneficial extract from organic orange blossoms. Neroli has enchanted humanity through the centuries with its uplifting and calming scent, providing a mysterious sense of well-being. It also has valuable anti-bacterial and astringent qualities. Orange Peel - due to its high flavonoid content and significant antioxidant compounds, the extract from the citrus peel boasts incredible free-radical scavenging activity, protects the skin's cells from damage and helps re-form connective collagen tissue.  Well known in traditional chinese medicine and ayurvedic medicine, the peel is particularly rich in vitamin C and the powerful constituent d-limonene, which helps clear waste material from skin tissues, thereby supporting a healthier complexion.

And those are just 3 of the some 22+ other natural ingredients in this one product! 

Here is a testimonial from one of the many loyal Grateful Body customers:

Hi from another grateful body! I just wanted you to know that just a few days after I started using your products for the face, my skin felt noticeably softer and smoother. I was unconsciously touching my face, and suddenly, there was, Wow! My skin feels different! Its so soft! And to think this is only the beginning!! Thanks all for your hard work and dedication to the "natural way." I wish you all the best luck in the world.   -Ann, Berkeley, CA

To purchase these great products, visit Grateful Body and get free shipping on any order over $100.00!


To enter the Giveaway and WIN your choice of cleanser, toner and moisturizer (Retail Value $77.85), leave me a comment letting me know that you are subscribed to my blog with e-mail (right side bar), along with your choice of cleanser, toner and moisturizer from Grateful Body!
 
Extra Entries (Do as many as you'd like and leave a comment for each extra entry):
-Sign up to get Grateful Body's newsletter!
-Follow Grateful Body on Twitter!
-Follow moi on Twitter!
-Read and leave a comment on my Grateful Body Review and let me know here that you did!
-Blog this and leave a link to this post and to Grateful Body!  Leave me the link where you did this!
-Tweet this!  You can copy and paste this~#Win a Grateful Body Basics Trio ($77) @GratefulBodysc 100% wonderful for your skin! http://bit.ly/cyUnYV  9/30/10!  (Leave the Tweet status in a comment and you can do this daily for one entry per day.)
-Grab my button and post it on your blog!
-Subscribe to the Grateful Body Blog RSS Feed!
-Be my Google Friend Follower (right side bar)!

Many thanks to the great people at Grateful Body for this great giveaway!  This giveaway will close at 11:59 MST on September 30th and winner will be selected with Random.org and notified with e-mail. Please respond within 48 hours!  I was provided with product to provide an honest review and product will be supplied by Grateful Body to the winner of this giveaway!

The Day The World Stopped

I have gone through my day and my thoughts have been on the thing that happened 9 years ago, that thing that somehow no one really wants to mention by name.  Too painful still.  I remember that my husband and I were together that day, and we watched in dismay and disbelief.  I remember my husband's tears, because he doesn't cry often.  I remember that we knelt in prayer for our country, for the people that were in pain, for the families of the victims, and for our own grief.  It seemed so incomprehensible that a city as great as New York, New York could be infiltrated in any way and such an act of terror performed.  It hurt so bad!  It still hurts.  And now, instead of peace and honor to the victims, we are still arguing about whether or not a mosque should go up near there.  It may not have been an issue if something else had been put up.  Just a simple memorial, nothing fancy, would have been great.  We understand, not a lot of money left after such a catastrophe.  I would have been OK with something simple.  The people would have made it amazing.  Now we need to suck it up and allow the towers to be replaced by what some feel is the very excuse the terrorists used to destroy two American iconic symbols and the lives who lived and worked within.  I don't know what is right.  But I pray that we will have courage to be and do what our founding fathers envisioned for this country.  God Bless America!

Myrtle Beach Memories

I've been to Myrtle Beach a couple of times, thanks to my ex-boyfriend's family vacations.  They would invite me along on their annual Myrtle Beach getaways. We packed up the cars and left beautiful Floyd, Virginia in the morning and arrived at Myrtle Beach in the afternoon, ready to spend a fun-filled couple of days relaxing on the beach and enjoying the sights and sounds of Myrtle Beach.   Wow!  That place is really hopping and I loved it!
Now I live in Utah and those days are long gone.  I love my life here in Utah and wouldn't trade it for anything, but those memories linger in the "backroads of my memory, flowing ever gentle on my mind".  -Glen Campbell

I recently found out that Myrtle Beach is an amazing golf area.  I was so busy with the fun on the beach that golfing totally escaped me.  But, yeah, there are at least 84 golf courses in and around the Myrtle Beach Grand Strands area!  So if you like to golf, that is the place to do it! 

There are so many different scenarios to choose from--like the course right by the beach or the inland course full of trees and quaint bridges!

And don't forget disc golf! Socastee Rec Park has a beautiful 18 hole course with with holes ranging in length from 137 to 760 ft.

 Next time I go to Myrtle Beach, I will take advantage of some of these awesome golf courses, along with the awesome beach experience.