BlendedReality
Member Since: April 2, 2015Reviews
Vichy Idealia Life Serum
The Vichy Idéalia Skin Sleep and Vichy Idéalia Life Serum was my first testing product I received from Chick Advisor. I have to admit hen I first came across Chick Advisor, it sounded too good to be true. BUT this was a complete 360 when my... +
The Vichy Idéalia Skin Sleep and Vichy Idéalia Life Serum was my first testing product I received from Chick Advisor. I have to admit hen I first came across Chick Advisor, it sounded too good to be true. BUT this was a complete 360 when my first package arrived in the mail. Let me tell you, I was ecstatic to say the least. Chick Advisor is so organized, professional and quite frankly...awesome!
My pretty pink box arrived with the full size bottles of Vichy Idéalia Skin Sleep and Vichy Idéalia Life Serum. A product that I had definitely heard of however not had an opportunity to try. Well, all I can say is that I am officially hooked on both Chick Advisor and this awesome new "pamper me" skin product. I have tried dozens of creams, cleaners and serums in the past. Some have been fantastic, some have been mediocre and some...well...just plain awful. I loved that when I applied both products that I didn't feel as though my face had a fresh coat of oil applied. Both apply very smoothly and absorbed with no greasy feel.
The other bonus to these products...the packaging. Very attractive and luxurious, the pink and silver is very feminine.
As I said, I am hooked. I really haven't found a product that I "must have" for my facial routine however I believe the Vichy is here to stay! Thanks Chick Advisor and Vichy!
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Mabel's Labels Limited Edition Camp Label Pack
I recently had the pleasure of trying the Mabel's Labels Limited Edition Camp Combo pack. The timing couldn't have been more perfect as we were just about to embark on our very first girl guide camping trip. As one of the girl guide leaders for my... +
I recently had the pleasure of trying the Mabel's Labels Limited Edition Camp Combo pack. The timing couldn't have been more perfect as we were just about to embark on our very first girl guide camping trip. As one of the girl guide leaders for my daughters unit, I was adamant on setting a good example by having ALL of Ava's belongings properly labeled. With more than 100 girls attending, there was sure to be some lost belongings.
A week prior to camp, our labels arrived. They were absolutely adorable! My daughter had selected the owl design, our unit symbol. Her name was clearly marked on a variety of sizes and shapes of labels. Her favorite was the metal bag tag that attached to her camping bag. As we prepared and packed for our camping trip, we labeled EVERYTHING! It was fantastic, I never felt so organized. I will be buying more for back to school this fall!
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Carnavel Brazilian
Date night! It was Rob’s 40th birthday and a great excuse for another much needed date night! We had driven by Carnaval so many times over the past year and agreed that one day we would try it. Well, tonight is the night we try a taste of... +
Date night!
It was Rob’s 40th birthday and a great excuse for another much needed date night! We had driven by Carnaval so many times over the past year and agreed that one day we would try it. Well, tonight is the night we try a taste of Brazil! As per the website reviews and the recommendations from friends and family, I made reservations online. This was relatively simple and took maybe 2 minutes to complete. After much antagonizing over what time we should have dinner, I finally decided that 4:30 would be a good time as the comedy show I had purchased tickets for started at 7:00. I should mention that Rob and I are not “night” people. We are usually in bed by 9 pm each night…yes 9 pm. This is what 4 kids will do to you!
Ok, so dinner at 4:30. Awesome. Excited for our night out, we arrived promptly at 4:30 and entered Carnival. Good thing we made reservations because the place was full by 4:45 p.m. We were greeted by a lovely hostess who directed us to our table upstairs on the second floor. Don’t worry, there is an elevator for those who cannot climb stairs due to certain circumstances. The décor was very classy and sophisticated with fresh cut flowers and vibrant stained glass hovering the ceilings. The view from our table was quite pleasant as it overlooked the waterfront walkway and cobblestone road. In the summer this view would be quite breathtaking with the full trees and flowers in bloom. We knew we were in a more “upscale” establishment when we were greeted by our server with our own glass bottle of H20. Usually you need to request a glass of water several times by which time you no longer need the water as you are paying the bill. Another indication we were in a “fancy” restaurant? Freshly pressed cloth napkins folded and placed on our dinner plates. Yes, we notice these little things because it is a luxury and a treat for us to venture out to a restaurant that does not include a kids play structure or the words happy meal on the menu. Our server was knowledgeable and explained the complete process for us as this is not your typical sit down restaurant. First we ordered our cocktails. I tried a Pina Lemenond, a taste of cinnamon with a twist of pineapple. Rob had the Tropical Whiskey, a little stronger with a variety of citrus garnishes. Then we were served fresh baked bread with a delightful spread. This hit the spot as we were both famished. Our server had placed two round “coaster” cards with a red side and a green side on the table. This was unique and something we had not seen before. Basically, we would continue to be served a variety of delicious meats cooked to perfection on a large skewer by men dressed in black with a crimson red scarf. The men in black would continue serving the mouthwatering meat as long as our green side was facing up. When we required a breather from filling our faces, we simply flipped the “coaster” to red. This signaled to the men in black that we were full at the moment and do not tempt us with any more succulent food. The side dishes were amazing with a large variety to sample…did I mention that they were unlimited as well?! Our favorites were the Macaxeira Frita and the Bacon Wrapped Filet Mignon. WOW is all I can say. I don’t remember ever having meat actually melt in my mouth. Finally, we finished off dinner with a grilled pineapple slice sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. This is not your typical dessert but it sure hit the spot. It was the perfect dish to satisfy our sweet tooth. Overall we were thrilled with our experience to Carnaval. For us to try and replicate this type of variety and selection at home on our own grill would have cost us a fortune. We would highly recommend trying out Carnaval for your next date night!
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Firefly Toothbrushes
Even super hero's need to brush their teeth... If your kids are anything like ours, getting them to brush their teeth can be a daily battle. I really don’t understand why though. To me it’s a relatively easy task but to our kids it’s as... +
Even super hero's need to brush their teeth...
If your kids are anything like ours, getting them to brush their teeth can be a daily battle. I really don’t understand why though. To me it’s a relatively easy task but to our kids it’s as though we have asked them to swallow a bucket of earth worms and gargle with green slime. Each morning I ask the same question to ALL four of them (yes, even the 13 year old), “Ok, did you brush your teeth?” They give me this sly grin followed by a silent head nod. Then I ask, “If I go check your toothbrush is it going to we wet?” Then they will run upstairs to quickly brush. Well, it didn’t take them long to figure out how to “trick me.” They started to run the toothbrush under water so it would be wet when I asked them. Ah huh! As though I had solved the biggest mystery in the world! Yup, one of those brief moments where you feel like super mom for figuring out their evil tricks and then seconds later like the biggest loser because A) you just figured out your kids are lying to you and B) because you were excited that you figured out that they were lying to you. Super!
Anyways, back to my dilemma! I have tried countless kids tooth paste brands, flavors, colors, etc. and nothing seems to work. Again, I am not sure what the deal is but oral hygiene is very important. So I have been on a mission to try and find something…anything that works. Well, I was at Walmart shopping the other day and spent a good 20 minutes down the toothbrush aisle. Yup, coffee in one hand and my shopping list in the other. There I studied the various tooth brushes, paste, mouth wash etc. That’s when I came across the Fire Fly brand of toothbrushes. I read each package carefully like a responsible parent while pressing each button activating their sounds and light up features (tee hee). Hey, these are pretty cool I thought to myself. I finally selected the Firefly Star Wars Light Up Timer Toothbrush for Devyn. It is in the shape of a small “laser sword” and the 1 minute light-up timer turns off automatically signaling children to stop brushing the top row of teeth and begin brushing the bottom row. So for 2 minutes, the toothbrush lights up, talks and makes the star wars “noise” (sorry, I am not a “Star Wars” fanatic). The cost? $5.97. Really, that is not bad. A regular toothbrush is anywhere from $1 and up. For the $6 I thought it was worth a shot. Devyn was super excited and couldn’t wait to try his new toothbrush. He was so proud that he brushed the whole time the light was flashing!
Then I selected the Fire Fly Hello Kitty Ready Go Toothbrush for Anna and the Monster High Toothbrush for Ava. All three have been so excited to brush their teeth each morning and night! Before they would briefly run their toothbrushes across their teeth for maybe 15-20 seconds and be done. The Fire Fly toothbrushes allows them to brush for the required time to ensure good dental hygiene while making it fun!
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Sparkel Toilet Bowl Cleaner
I know toilet bowl cleaner is not the most exciting or glamorous topic but we all use toilets and unfortunately they do need to be cleaned! Anyways, we live on the outskirts of Winnipeg in a small community called East St. Paul. Some would... +
I know toilet bowl cleaner is not the most exciting or glamorous topic but we all use toilets and unfortunately they do need to be cleaned! Anyways, we live on the outskirts of Winnipeg in a small community called East St. Paul. Some would classify this as a “suburb” and some would classify this as living in the “country”. Regardless of what it’s called, the fact is we have well water instead of city water. Anyone doesn’t know what this means? Ok well, our water is very “hard”, leaves a nice reddish water stain on anything it touches and smells like a cup-o-farts! Sounds fantastic doesn’t it?! I know, you are thinking…why the hell would anyone want to live there?! We believe that it is a small sacrifice to pay for living in the “country” and having a beautiful, peaceful private yard with deer grazing on our grass (and flowers!) all while being minutes from the city.
Ok, sorry I am digressing…back to this wonderful toilet bowl cleaner “sparkel”. The well water makes it very difficult to keep the bathroom fixtures clean without great effort! We have tried a plethora of overpriced useless cleaning products however nothing has worked. Until… my mom introduced us to “Sparkle”, this magnificent product in a simple red and white bottle. I was very skeptical that anything at this point was going to do the trick but decided to try it anyways. What the hell right? I squirted some around the toilet bowl and watched the magic unfold in front of my eyes! By golly it was actually working with absolutely NO ELBOW GREESE! Within minutes, my toilet was virtually clean with no water stains. I had never seen this cleaner before, where was this little gem hiding? I would highly recommend this product if you have trouble with hard water stains like we do…or should I say did!
P.S. – this review was strictly my opinion. I did not receive any monetary or complimentary product in exchange for this review.
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La Cuisson Cafe
It’s Friday night and we are kid free! YES! A date night! This usually happens once a week when all 4 kids are at the “ex’s”. We strongly feel that a weekly date night is a NECESSITY for any couple with or without kids. Let me remind... +
It’s Friday night and we are kid free! YES! A date night! This usually happens once a week when all 4 kids are at the “ex’s”. We strongly feel that a weekly date night is a NECESSITY for any couple with or without kids. Let me remind you…we have four kids. Exhausted from the work week and various kids’ activities we decided to do something low key like mechanical bull riding! Ha Ha, kidding! Seriously though, we just wanted to get out of the house and enjoy an evening without breaking the bank. My suggestion was to grab a coffee and maybe hit up a book store as there were some new releases I wanted to check out. Although we love our Timmies and Starbucks…we were just not in the mood for another coffee chain restaurant. So we decided to head down to Corydon Ave., a trendy strip in Winnipeg that offers a variety of small unique venues. That’s when we spotted “La Cuisson Café” and their bright sign in the window announcing “NOW OPEN”. Eager to try something new, we quickly parked and made our way in. The atmosphere was elegant and inviting with very friendly knowledgeable staff. The décor was a mixture of modern with a splash of antique which is one of my personal faves! We sat at a small vintage table for two and opened the imprinted leather menus. There was a vast selection of English Afternoon Tea (Hightea), Syphoned Coffee, Fruit Teas, Sandwiches, Waffles, Soups, Salads and Homemade Desserts. After contemplating over whether I wanted tea or coffee I finally decided on the Caramel Tea and Rob selected a specialty coffee. I have to say, I usually like my coffee and tea to contain a pound of sugar (seriously I am a triple triple type of girl). BUT I did not need more than a few grains of sugar in my tea. The flavor was amazing and so natural. Rob enjoyed his coffee black as well (normally a double double type of guy). We couldn’t help but try an array of the lovely desserts that were nicely displayed at the front counter. OMG! That’s all I can say is OMG. We selected 5 dainties to try and they were simply scrumptious! I couldn’t tell you the names of the desserts but you really can’t go wrong with any of their selections. Rob and I will definitely be frequenting the “La Cuisson Café” for future date nights!
Be sure to check out their facebook page @ https://www.facebook.com/lacuissoncafewinnipeg
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