Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Tell Me: Over or Under? Enter to Win One of Ten Cottonelle Gift Baskets



Cottonelle is getting to the bottom of a great debate raging across America. Cottonelle wants to know: how do you roll? Over or under? Vote for your preferred way to roll at CottonelleRollPoll.com.

Everyone has an opinion on the right way to roll – over or under – and both points-of-view have been argued in households for ages. This January, Cottonelle brand sets out to settle this Great Debate once and for all. Are you Team Over or Team Under?

I admit that I stand tall on my personal stance for team Over . Really, the science behind that is that we go through a lot of toilet paper in this 9 member household, plus many guests as we seemingly have an open door policy. Keeping it over in all 3 bathrooms in this house keeps it neat and accessible, and you're less likely to rip off tiny useless shreds! Plus, my dog really likes paper anything--and keeping it Over the kinda thwarts his attempts at toilet paper mutiny.


Leave a comment on this post & and tell me which team you roll with, and you will be entered to win 1 of 10 Cottonelle gift baskets randomly chosen on January 29, 2010 from all entries, with many thanks to Mom Bloggers Club and the super nice folks at Cottonelle.


Disclosure: This post is my entry into a contest for a month's worth of Cottonelle toilet paper as a member of the Mom Bloggers Club.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

2010 High Resolution(s): @Twincere (That's me) Is Keeping It Simple


I really hate saying the R- word. Its difficult for me to make a list of resolutions because I feel that I am just setting myself up for failure. Let's make a resolution to not make resolutions! Ha! Bottom line: In the back of my mind I know what I need to do. We all do. 2009 was one heck of a year and I am desperate and anticipating for 2010 to be much better on so many levels, financially, personally, professionally. I will however, always count my blessings...because behind every gloomy, sodden cloud is a bit of sunshine that helps me make it through.

My personal weakness is finding the mental and physical stamina to stay motivated and invigorated in everything I do. I'll be 34 this Spring and honestly, running after 7 kids becomes utterly exhausting. Granted, living with chronic anemia and its unflattering side effects plays a role in that, but I know that I want so much more out of my life. Its going to be a good year, I can feel it in my nearly-middle-aged-bones.

Water on the brain
Drinking more water has been at the top of my resolution list for two years in a row. This is resolution that I've really worked hard to maintain, and this year will be no different.

Java Junkie
I will be quitting subtly reducing my expensive coffee habit and making it at home as often as willpower shall mandate. It’ll be just as good (maybe better, I pray I hope) if  I steam the milk.

A Stroke of Genius
I will handwrite and or bespeak a note or words of thanks for every kind gesture big and small, as much as I can. It's so important to let someone know that they are appreciated and valued.

Liar Liar, pants on fire
I am going to stop lying to myself. Especially about things like my shoe size, clothing, and gray hairs: “I’m an 8, so what? P.S. I’m really a 10/12 . Ugh, I hate myself.”

Time After Time
I have personally taken a vow of punctuality. I have chronic issues with it, and I know its super annoying. Hubs says I'd be late for my own funeral.

New Heights
I want to try new, daring adventurous things. That means not being a wimp and actually braving the roller coasters at Busch Gardens and King's Dominion, with my kids and hubby....laughing all the way--instead of crying.

Rock ’Em, Sock ’Em
I want to wear matching socks more often. That means painstakingly devising a fool proof plan that entails the proper sorting and matching of the mountains of socks that is produced weekly in this 9 member household.

Grow a Pair
I want to not kill everything I touch. I am going to search the web over and try to turn this black thumb of mine green, once and for all!

Heck, Yes
I want to end the nay-saying with the naughts.I will work on being more positive. I will be the semi- Yes Mom and Yes-Wife.

Say It Ain't So
I'm working on deep cleaning my potty mouth. I'm a native New Yorker, easier said than done.

Resident Night Owl
I will be more consistent (even though I may be too tired to wash the makeup from my face) to treat my skin with love and respect and the best moisturizer, because this getting older bit sucks, bad.

Beauty Awaits No One
I will be more committed to getting my beauty sleep this year, even though the Night Shift at the hospital beckons me.

Stretch it to the Limit
I will take a a few moments to stretch and strengthen my body every day. This is something I've taken for granted for far too long. I shall cherish what little physical flexibility I have and work on regaining it.

Charitable Influences
As a family, we will continue to make an impact. Pick a charity, pluck a heartstring. Spending time together last year as a family and volunteering at our local FoodBank was a grounding and humbling experience for all of us. It truely is a hearwarming experience and makes one appreciate what they have.

Just Talk It Out
There will still be no texting at our dinner table. Practicing and perfecting engaging conversations will give our family lots to talk about.

French Toil and Trouble
I'd like to seriously brush up on my French, which is currently, ehm, how you say, mad rusty. It wouldn't hurt the effort if my fabulous Hubs were to conveniently dangle the new Costes 2 fragrance as le carrot.

Ohm-ni-perfect
I will be looking for a little peace and quiet among the harrowing screams, lost shoes,e-mail messages, texts, calls, teacher conferences, and hardscrabble lunches that often consist of the toddlers left overs. I will seek out my ethereal inner chi to transport me away from “humdrum noise” so that I can take a moment to be alone with my ideas.

Dieting
I'm swearing off my favorite guilty pleasures: French fries and real butter. Let me get back to this one.

Excercise
There will be more sex in 2010. Ugh, with my husband...not that we didn't do it a lot anyway. just sayin'

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Mom's Must Have Moment Feature: Automated Man: Stuff That Grown Up Boys Should Think ABout...But Don't



Its great that Mom's have a plethora of choices when it comes to shopping around the internet for the coolest items for their kids. But what about the young fellas in your life  who are nearly grown and have one foot out the door and the other foot treading the waters of semi-adulthood? Moms, you know what I'm talking about---your older sons who (sorta live on their own,are away at school, etc) lovingly drop off   their  laundry for you to do and who always have their noses in your fridge. Or your brother who stops by to "shop" at your place for some toilet paper, toothpaste, and swiped your favorite bottle of shampoo. Yeah, I have one of those, too.
You know that its coming---(seriously, its Thanksgiving week) Those young men will be unrecognizably stumbling home with overgrown facial stubble, nasty breath, sweaty, mystery food- stained muscle shirts and stinky sneakers parked on your antique coffee table, with months worth of laundry and a ginormous duffle bag to shop at your place. Or better yet, the all too familiar, "...can I get a couple of bucks to buys some soap and razors and stuff.?"
There has got to be a better way. Its Called Automated Man. Automated Man will deliver a great selection of must-have toiletries every month to your favorite man-child. He'll receive all the standard necessities of  bachelorhood without ever having to hit the store. (And this will save you a boatload of  money and sanity too!) Peace of mind is priceless.

Each month, Automated Man delivers all the name-brand toiletry essentials – shaving kit, toothbrush & paste, deodorant, shampoo & conditioner, condoms (optional) and tons more – direct to your doorstep, or where ever that man-child may be laying his weary head.



 Automated Man was created especially for busy young men, agoraphobics, bargain-shoppers, the very lazy… and those who love them, like you and me.  The service is available for $39.99/month ( and is jam packed with $140 worth of stuff); delivery is automatically renewed each month, delivered on the same day, and may be easily canceled at any time (really).   Automated Man includes the following products on a monthly basis: razor blades, shaving cream, after shave, toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash, chapstick, dental floss, shampoo, soap, deodorant, and cotton swabs; all are name brands and cheaper than store prices. Also, in the first month’s order, the recipient receives a hanging toiletry bag for all their products, as well as a razor and sunscreen. This is $140 worth of stuff, but thru Automated Man you get it for only $39.99 --Plus helpful tips on hygeine, personal care and grooming.That in itself is every Mother's dream, and priceless.
Automated Man is an invaluable service that would be beneficial to any young man living away from home - boarding school, college, military, embarking on a first job in a new city, etc. Seriously, with holidays fast approaching--what makes a better gift than one that saves Mom time and money throughout the year?

Friday, November 6, 2009

Putting The Sizzle Back In The Kitchen: Flirty Aprons Review & Giveway




I'm no Rachel Ray, but I enjoy my time in the kitchen and I honestly love to cook. I enjoy it now because I know that my family truly enjoys my cooking. Rewind to 14 years ago and I was like a wet noodle of a mess, my then (first) husband would impishly bounce my biscuits off of the wall, and they'd ruin the sheet rock. Well, we've come a long way baby--and so has the evolution of the chic apron. Let's face it, aprons used to be ugly, and we'd never wear them. And if we did, this is the image we'd have in our heads--remember  these? ▬▬▬►▬▬▬►▬▬▬►▬▬▬►▬▬▬►▬▬▬►
Well, maybe she looks a bit too happy and contrived. Aprons have long been a forward-looking trend in upscale domesticity and down-to-earth values, while at the same time, hearken us back to the romantic aesthetics of 1940s, 1950s and 1960s women. The romantic ideology of the apron reflected a time when life was simpler, families were closer, time was generous, and simple pleasures were not taken for granted. Fast-forwarding to today's overwhelming culture of job demands, travel schedules, and hurried children, quality time spent with loved ones is more important than ever. We love to cook and entertain when blessed with spare moments, and the basic addition of  something wonderful, colorful, simple or extraordinary can make those moments even more meaningful.Who knew that perfecting upon Grandma's famous Bread pudding could be a Kodak moment? Well, if  someone wants to whip out a camera, I'm all for it---at least let me be cute!

When Jamie over at Flirty Aprons allowed me to choose a Flirty Apron style of my choice for this review, I was pretty stoked. I was thinking that aprons were appropiately functional, and I really needed a good, sturdy one that would survive the holiday spatters and spills. I never expected fabulous. First thought as I browsed the Flirty Aprons Website: Wow, aprons that I actually want to wear? I became enthralled by each unique twist and touch, embellishment and hint of whimsy displayed in Flirty Aprons massive apron collection. It was a difficult decision, but I eventually chose the Original Chick Pink Apron, because I am a girly girl. I received the apron in the mail in the same week that I placed the order, like seriously, 2 days time frame. Amazing. Turns out that I really like the Original Chick Pink Apron, I wear it all the time. The first night I used it, Hubs thought I looked great -for him the effect was equivelant to lingerie in the kitchen.While that really wasn't my intent, I admit that I felt great, was able to protect my clothing, able to stuff things in the roomy pockets (I am a serial pocket stuffer--so that's important) and lingered a bit longer in the kitchen. What was I doing? The kids and I baked some cookies, which happen to be Hubs favorite kind. Nevertheless, he feigned shock like it was his birthday.
I have a feeling that Flirty Aprons are about to become the "collectible of collectibles"!! Included here are a broad variety of styles, fabrics, colors and influences, suitable for all ages, shapes, tastes and life styles! I love that they are stylish, fashionable, one size fits-all with extra long ties and scooped sides, and washes well! (I've washed it twice already, thanks to a sauce mishap) and the color didn't fade and the threads are all intact. Tough stuff. I would absolutely ❤ it if Flirty Aprons would expand on the product line to include fabric coordinating housecleaning type gloves and kitchen hand towels. Then we'd have cute, all around!

These aprons are adjustable and fit great. If they had more of a backside, I'd wear it as a dress, serious. They are that cute.




Flirty Aprons   has large assortment of chic inspired aprons for women, children (the cutest Mommy & Me styles) and several cool "manly" looking aprons for the guys ("My grill is hotter than yours! ")  They'd make great hostess gifts or anytime gifts for any fun, fearless foodie in your life.


Thanks to Flirty Aprons, one Multiple Blessings reader will receive a Flirty Apron of their choice.

How to Enter the Giveaway

You MUST Follow me by doing do one or both of the first requirements listed below, include the info in your initial comment, this MUST be done accordingly before all other additional entries will be considered because I will be checking, thanks in advance! If you do not have a blogger account with an active email on file, please leave your email addy in your comment, (like this: Twincere(at)gmail(dot)com--it prevents spam bots from picking it up). If I can't contact you, how are ya gonna know you won? Winners will be notified via email  and have 48 hours to contact me, or risk forfeiting the prize and another winner will have to be chosen. Good Luck! Deadline to enter is 11:59 pm EST on Saturday, November 21, 2009 ! Winner will be chosen via Random.Org

*REQUIRED*

  1. 1 Entry–Follow @Twincere on Twitter and leave a comment on this post with your Twitter name so that I can verify that you are a real person. Real people are cool. Spambots suck. If you follow already, you know that we're cool, just remind me! 【ツ】
AND/OR (since I know that not everyone is on the Twitter bandwagon)
  1. 3 Entries–Follow Multiple Blessings on blogger/google friend connect & Go to the Flirty Aprons Website here and tell me your favorite apron style
  2. 3 Entries–Follow Mommy's Multiple Mayhem on blogger/google friend connect & tell me who you'd like to win this Flirty Apron for
After you’ve completed one of the above steps, you can earn bonus entries by leaving separate comment entries for each that you choose to do. Please follow the directions carefully, or your comment will have to be deleted (sorry) Here’s how:
  • 1 Extra Entry for each Tweet about the contest unlimited entry opportunity, leaving a separate comment on this post linking to each tweet. No crazy tweeting though, because twitter will shut you down for spam. You can copy this if you'd like: Put the sizzle back in the kitchen with a Flirty Apron #giveaway from @Twincere http://tinyurl.com/ydxytw8
  • 2 Extra Entry for each of my contests that you enter.unlimited entry opportunity
  • 2 Extra Entries –for each non-giveaway post you visit on either of my blogs and comment on, please leave the name/title of the post that you commented in 3 separate comments in the comment section of this post below. Epigrammatic comments with “enter me", “me too”, or “count me in” and so forth will not be considered eligible and will be deleted. unlimited entry opportunity
  • ✮ I ♥LOVE♥ Online-Sweepstakes.com! I love to win stuff and want my readers to win, too! If you happen to be one of my OLS peeps, leave me your OLS screen name and friend me on OLS (I'm GonnaWinBig) for 5 additional DAILY entries. Please leave 5 separate comments each day! ✮
  • 5 Extra Entries – Favorite Multiple Blessings in Technorati and leave your ID name in a separate comment (you may click the green blog reactions link on my sidebar to get there)
  •  5 Extra Entries- for displaying my button on your blog. Get 15 Extra Entries if you decide to display both of my blog buttons on your blog and/or blog about this giveaway on your own blog. (button codes are in the right hand column, please include the links to your blog for verification)
  • 10 Extra Entries- for blogging about this giveaway and including link backs directly to this post. Please include the link to your post in your comment so that you can be credited.
  • 10 Extra Entries-enter to win Noobie's Kindle contest via my personal link here http://www.noobie.com/kindle-giveaway?ref=950583411

Winners must be 18 or older and this contest is open U.S. residents only. Void where prohibited. If you win and laws or rules prohibit your prize to be shipped to your address, another winner will be selected immediately.

Make sure you leave a VALID email address.
I will not search beyond your profile to find you.That is a part of entering and following rules. Thanks.
You have 48 hours to respond to your winning email.
When entering a giveaway, you MUST follow the Required Entry.
Epigrammatic entries with “enter me", “me too”, or “count me in” and so forth will be deleted.
All negative comments such as “This item is not even worth winning” will be deleted and you will receive ONE warning. Should you violate that warning you will then be banned from the site.

I allow entries Per Email address.
So long as you follow the initial rules and guidelines, you may enter using one or all of your email addresses.
If you have questions about these rules or any other questions/comments, please email me: Twincere(at)Gmail(dot)com

*I received an Original Chic Pink Apron to keep for the purpose of this review.I was not compensated for this post. The opinions expressed herein are my own*

 *Disclosure: As the owner of this site, I am sometimes compensated or offered a product to keep in exchange for providing my opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though I may have received compensation for content/review posts or advertisements, I always give my honest opinions based on my own thorough research, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this site are purely my own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the company, provider or party in question. As the owner of this site, I respect my readers and contributors privacy, and will NEVER spam, sell, or rent any aspect of readers/contributors personal information. EVER.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

WAT-AAH! WAT-AAH! WAT-AAH! Review & Giveaway!


So, what's with all the WAT-AAH! buzz, anyway? Besides the catchy and uber cool name, which takes me back to my native New York, with much appreciation for the Brooklyn dialect inflected term for "water". Well, according to the company literature “WAT-AAH! aims to help combat childhood and teen obesity by offering a healthy drink alternative, with attitude, not sugar.”
I was unpleasantly surprised to discover the sugar content on some of the drinks that my family has coveted for so long. SNAPPLE (my personal weakness) has 23 grams of sugar. CAPRI SUN has 23 grams of sugar. LEMONADE has 27 grams of sugar. MONSTER ENERGY drink has 54 grams of sugar. Even VITAMIN WATER has 13 grams of sugar! Change will be good, and is starting--now!! Here is WAT-AAH taking presence--front & center-- over our other "junky" drinks in my fridge.




WAT-AAH! is not just water, it comes in 4 varieties targeting key elements of the healthy body:

WAT-AAH! Bones: the first premium, sugar-free, ultra purified with calcium to help bone growth

WAT-AAH! Energy: the first premium sugar-free, ultra purified , with electrolytes and oxygen for increased metabolic function and energy.

WAT-AAH! Brain: the first premium, sugar-free, ultra purified with added electrolytes to encourage faster absorption, hydration and cooling down.
WAT-AAH! Body: the foundation of the brand with clean and pure spring , no sodium, no chemicals, and still no sugar.

Why WAT-AAH!? Water is simply the key to true hydration. WAT-AAH! is ultra-pure water containing the right amount of essential minerals to fortify and maintain children's health (www.wat-aah.com). Our mission is to reverse the established behavior and dependency on sweetened drinks among American children, thus reducing the alarmingly high rates of childhood obesity. Ultimately, WAT-AAH! aims to teach kids that healthy bodies can be obtained through healthy hydration!

WAT-AAH! is the first 100% sugar-free, functional beverage brand designed especially for kids. This fall, WAT-AAH! is challenging you and your families to stay away from the unhealthy, sugar-laden beverages and to DRINK MORE WAT-AAH!


Thank you to WAT-AAH! for giving me the opportunity to review this product, and my kids thank you, as well! When the all too familiar UPS man delivered the package from Let Water Be Water LLC, my kids were instantly curious about the the "cool" bottles and wanted to try it immediately. They were attracted to the sleek design of the bottles and the neon colored labels.They initially expected the water to have different flavors. My kids do drink plain water on a regular basis, so I wasn't sure how they'd react to the flavor of enhanced water. The thing is, WAT-AAH! tastes just like pure water with no hint of anything "extra" at all, so the kids really loved it. Kudos for marketing, because the design of the bottles does exactly what the product has intended to do, targeting the kid demographic and motivating them to choose the water over other sugar laden drinks. The verdict in our house? Yummy! Cool! This stuff is great, Mommy! I like saying "WAT-AAH!" Can we get some to bring to school--everyone will be jealous!"

I am proud to say that my family is happy to be participating in the WAT-AAH! Challenge. That's music to this Mom's ears! Here's 3 of my kids enjoying their WAT-AAH! They're begging me to buy more! Yes, I will!


TAKE THE CHALLENGE! You may already be familiar with "The WAT-AAH! Challenge." For the past six months, our spunky little brand convinced 9 out of 10 kids (1,337) from all over the country to choose water over the sugary sodas and juices. Mom bloggers, families, and school teachers posted their results via video clips and photographs on http://wat-aahchallenge.blogspot.com. This Fall WAT-AAH! is introducing it's Back-to-School Challenge!





Your kids can take the WAT-AAH challenge too. You could win FREE WAT-AAH! and T-Shirts which will be given to the top five videos submitted! Visit their blog for more information.

"WAT-AAH! is the epitome of a momprenuer! We are a small business launched by four determined mothers and one concerned father. Our mission is to fight the battle against childhood obesity and to teach kids that healthy bodies can be obtained through healthy hydration. Together with our 12 kids, we have created an appealing brand– a brand full of attitude and spunk, enough to convince kids to stay away from sugar-laden beverages like sports drinks, sodas and “fruit” juices.
WAT-AAH! was launched in June 2008 in New York City. And our marketing strategy is working! Trend Hunter Magazine has named WAT-AAH! as one of the best products for kids in 2008! Kids are visiting our website and asking their moms for WAT-AAH!"
Right now, you can purchase WAT-AAH! in Whole Foods stores, and other fine retail outlets in New York City and at www.drinkwataah.com. You can also take advantage of a great deal right now at Amazon.com , a 12 pack is $12, a VERY awesome deal!




WAT-AAH! is a great way to get your kids drinking more water. It's healthy and refreshing..... and kids find it hard to resist the ultra-cool colors and bottle design!

One Lucky Multiple Blessings reader will win a Healthy Hydration Kit from WAT-AAH! Its packed full of goodies that your kids will be sure to love and want to share with their friends and classmates. Help spread the word on healthy fluid consumption!

How to Enter the Giveaway

You MUST do one or both of the first requirements listed below, include the info in your initial comment, this MUST be done accordingly before all other additional entries will be considered because I will be checking, thanks in advance! If you do not have a blogger account with an active email on file, please leave your email addy in your comment, (like this: Twincere(at)gmail(dot)com--it prevents spam bots from picking it up). If I can't contact you, how are ya gonna know you won? Winners will be notified via email and Twitter and have 48 hours to contact me before forfeiting prize and another winner will be chosen. Good Luck! The deadline to enter this giveaway is 11:59 pm EST on Friday, October 9th, 2009!!
  1. 2  Entries–Follow @Twincere and @WATAAH on Twitter and leave a comment on this post with your Twitter name so that I can verify that you are a real person. Real people are cool. Spambots suck.
AND/OR (since I know that not everyone is on the Twitter bandwagon)
  1. 2  Entries–Follow Multiple Blessings and Drink WAT-AAH! blog on blogger/google friend connect.
After you’ve completed one of the above required steps, you can earn bonus entries by leaving separate comment entries for each that you choose to do. Please follow the directions carefully, or your comment will have to be deleted (sorry) Here’s how:
  • 1 Extra Entry for each Tweet about the contest up to FIVE times a day, leaving a separate comment on this post linking to each tweet. You can copy this if you'd like:
  • Please RT @Twincere has a great @WATAAH #review & #giveaway here: http://tinyurl.com/yalk4jl
  • 5 Extra Entries –WAH-TAAH! Challenge trivia: Go to The WAT-AAH Challenge campaign blog and watch the short video, then answer this: What percentage of kids agreed that WAT-AAH! is the best water that they ever had? Leave your answer in the post, that would be 5 separate comments here (below) for 5 bonus entries. 
  • 2 Extra Entries – Favorite Multiple Blessings in Technorati and leave your ID name in a separate comment (you may click the green blog reactions link on my sidebar to get there)
  • 1 Extra Entry – Add me to your blog roll or link listing.
  • 3 Extra Entries – Grab my Multiple Blessings button (button code is in the right sidebar, scroll down a bit) and place it on your blog sidebar or navigation and leave me a comment on this post with a link where I can see it in action.
  • 5 Extra Entries – Write a post/small blurb about this giveaway on your blog with a direct link to my blog.
  • 2 Extra Entries –for each of my current contests that you enter. Be sure to tell me in your comment which contest(s) you entered.
  • ✮ I ♥LOVE♥ Online-Sweepstakes.com! I love to win and want my readers to win, too! If you happen to be one of my OLS peeps, leave me your OLS screen name and friend me on OLS (I'm GonnaWinBig) for 4 additional DAILY entries. Please leave 4 separate comments each day! ✮

Winners must be 18 or older and this contest is open U.S. residents only. Void where prohibited. If you win and laws or rules prohibit your prize to be shipped to your address,
another winner will be selected immediately. Good Luck! The deadline to enter this giveaway is 11:59 pm EST on Friday, October 9th, 2009!!
Make sure you leave a VALID email address.

I will not search beyond your profile to find you.That is a part of entering and following rules. Thanks.

You have 48 hours to respond to your winning email.
When entering a giveaway, you MUST follow the Required Entry.
Epigrammatic entries with “enter me", “me too”, or “count me in” and so forth will be deleted.
All negative comments such as “This item is not even worth winning” will be deleted and you will receive ONE warning. Should you violate that warning you will then be banned from the site.

I allow entries Per Email address.
So long as you follow the initial rules and guidelines, you may enter using one or all of your email addresses.
If you have questions about these rules or any other questions/comments, please email me: Twincere@Gmail.com


*I received a product to sample and keep for this review, but no monetary compensation. The views and opinions expressed in this post are my own.*

*Disclosure: As the owner of this site, I am sometimes compensated to provide my opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though I may have received compensation for content/review posts or advertisements, I always give my honest opinions based on my own thorough research, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this site are purely my own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the company, provider or party in question. As the owner of this site, I respect my readers and contributors privacy, and will NEVER spam, sell, or rent any aspect of readers/contributors personal information.











Thursday, September 24, 2009

Review: Kraft® Easy Mac Cups

In The Kitchen Microwave Review: Kraft® Easy Mac Cups



Kraft® Easy Mac Cup
Price: approx $1 each cup
Serving: 1 cup, 2.05 oz.
Calories: 220
Fat: 7%, 4.5g
Sodium: 27%, 660mg
Protein: 14%, 7g
Carbs: 15%, 39g
Fiber: 1g

I've been an exclusive Mom Knows 100 Reviewer at SheKnows.com since its inception this past Spring. I recently had the opportunity to sample the new Kraft® Easy Mac Cups. I thought I'd share my review here with my Multiple Blessings readers.

Kraft says: Kraft® Easy Mac Macaroni and Cheese Cups make it easy to enjoy delicious macaroni and cheese anytime. The microwaveable cups cook quickly and are full of creamy, cheesy flavor.

After you remove the plastic lid, you might be surprised to find the foam 2.05 oz. cup about half full of macaroni noodles. Remove the cheese sauce packet and set aside. Proceed to fill the cup about halfway to the fill line with water (be sure to use the recommended time and water level markings on the bowl.) Please follow the instructions carefully, as there is very little room for error. Stir the mixture well and place it in the microwave on HIGH for 3 and a half minutes or until the pasta is tender. When it comes out of the microwave, it will look remarkably unappealing – there looks to be way too much water in there and you might have some weird bubbles. Disregard. DO NOT DRAIN. Open the cheese mix packet and dump it in, then stir-stir-stir for a minute or two. The cheesy powder is a bit clumpy and you have to really encourage it to mix with the watery noodles, but stick with it and eventually it will blend. It does thicken a bit upon standing. Once it’s done, it tastes pretty much like packaged macaroni and cheese, if done correctly. . Mind you; this is a pretty small cup, about the size of a deli cup of soup, but you’ll find that it’s warm and a filling snack/fairly decent lunch entree. I rounded it out with some cheese and crackers (yes, I know, cheese on cheese) that I’d had stashed in the cupboard-- and it was a perfectly sized lunch. On its own, this probably wouldn’t be quite enough for a fully satisfying meal, but it’s definitely enough to get you through in a pinch until you can consume a real meal. The current available flavors, Original Cheese, Triple Cheese, Alfredo and Bacon. Yes, Bacon, but that's not as good, too tangy and salty for my taste. You really don’t need to mess with a classic, so my fave was the Original and Triple Cheese flavors.
My kids love these for afternoon snacks when they get home from school, or between lunch and dinner. Even my 9 year olds can make them without adult supervision. Most of the time I'll add a touch of margarine, or cream cheese to make it creamier – I loved the suggestion of adding tuna – my kids love it. Maybe even throw in a tablespoon of frozen peas too….mac, tuna, and peas--great combo!
Given my first prep faux pas, I must admit that I was fairly satisfied with Kraft’s® Easy Mac microwave cups. I know that they create waste and cost too much, but they do deliver a decent amount of salty, cheesy macaroni product. Being rather frugal minded, I'd probably only buy them if they were drastically discounted at my local grocery store. Otherwise, for my family--the convenience doesn't justify the expense.
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*I received a product sample for this review, but no monetary compensation. The views and opinions expressed in this post are my own.*
 

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