How to Buy the Right Car for Your Family

Laura W Uncategorized September 26, 2017 0 Comment

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Whether you’re in the market for a new car for work or you need something reliable for your growing family, you probably already know that finding the right car can be a long and challenging process. But it doesn’t have to be! Read on to find out how to buy the right car for your family.

Tips for Buying the Right Car

Do Your Research

First things first: do your research. I can’t stress this enough! You must know the facts about the make, model and price of your car. I recommend you start with Cars.com to help you learn about your potential purchase. Not only does Cars.com include a lot of information about a wide variety of cars, it also has a Videos & Reviews feature with honest information about the things that aren’t so great about a particular car.

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And if you have a family, one feature that you’ll really want to check out is Cars.com’s Car Seat Check Honor Roll which is updated yearly and recognizes the cars that have ample room for at least two car seats and have Latch anchors that make car seat installation easier. Check out How Cars.com Conducts Car Seat Checks to see how thorough they are in the process.

Shop Around

Don’t just stick with one dealer – shop around to get the best prices! Competition is the name of the game, right? Yes, dealers can stock huge selections at different prices, but it doesn’t mean that those prices are competitive. Be sure to visit multiple dealers and research similar cars you’re interested in to determine a baseline price for your car.

If you’re buying a used vehicle (a solid option for families on a budget), you’ll definitely want to look at multiple dealers and consider the number of miles as well as the wear and tear on the cars you’re looking at.

Take Your Time

Be sure to take your time and find the car that is right for you and your family. Do your research, shop around, and don’t give in to sneaky car salesman tactics! Rushing your purchase may cause you to overpay and leave the lot with something that’s less than ideal for your family. To help you stay strong and find the right car for you, ask a friend or family member to accompany you to the dealership to make sure you don’t get talked into buying a car you don’t really want.

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Purchasing a car for your family doesn’t have to be a big deal. The more you know about the process, the better off you will be! Cars.com has been around since 1998 and will help you with the car buying process. Doing your research, shopping around, and taking your time will help you find just the right car for your family.

Vtech Farm and Learn Animal Wagon – Playtime goes wild with learning!

Kelsey 12 Months and Up, Baby/Kid Toys September 14, 2017September 22, 2017farm and learn animal wagon, Smart Animal Farm by Vtech, Vtech Farm and Learn Animal Wagon, vtech farm toy, vtech go go line 0 Comment

Vtech Farm and Learn Animal Wagon is the MUST Have Toy This Year

Clay’s first birthday is on the 20th of this month, and the other day he got an early birthday present! This Vtech Farm and Learn Animal Wagon, let’s just say he has barely wanted to stop playing with it since we opened it! He is absolutely fascinated with the hay bale. It comes with two goats, hay, a tractor and trailer.

In a hurry? BUY the Smart Animal Farm by Vtech by clicking here!

Here is a quick video, I wanted you all to get to see Clay playing with it! He truly is loving this, anything with animals and he is a fan! This is for age range of 1 year up to 5 years, so there is a long time frame! It is a great way for kids to pretend to be a farmer and having fun while doing it! The tractor’s windshield changes to different drivers and the window opens and closes. when you push the top of the tractor a horn blows, which Clay loves!

Works with Go! Go! Smart Animals and Go! Go! Smart Wheels playsets

Smart Animals Smart Wheels Animals Farm

What is really neat about the Go! Go! Sets is they can work together. You can buy the Go! Go! Smart Animals and/or Go! Go! Smart Wheels Playsets and they interact all together! It is neat that you can always buy new sets to play with and keep your child interested! Or if you are buying for a gift, you know another gift to buy to go along with the first one!

Smart Animal Farm by Vtech

Another neat feature on this Smart Animal Farm by Vtech is when you push the moms hair at the top she will talk or sing! Saying things like G is for goat, and so on. When you touch the babies nose to the mama she interacts with baby goat. She gives a nurturing response to her baby goat!

This would make a great gift for a child anytime of year! Great toy to have your child play with and learn while doing it!

LOreal Paris RevitaLift Anti-Wrinkle + Firming Face – Lets Take Beauty!

Kelsey Beauty, Products We Tried September 1, 2017September 22, 2017antiwrinkle cream, beauty product review, firming cream, LOreal Paris RevitaLift 0 Comment

LOreal Paris RevitaLift Line Review

When it comes to beauty products I love trying out new things! I watch a lot of YouTube videos and I love makeup tutorials, and a lot of beauty vloggers rave over the LOreal Paris Revitalift line! I am in my early 30’s and I want to make sure I can stay away from those fine lines and wrinkles as long as possible! That is why I bought this anti-wrinkle and firming cream a while back!

In a Hurry?! BUY the Cream by clicking here!

I have been using this cream for a little over 5 weeks now, and I really love it. I have super dry skin so anything to help bring my skin some moisture I am all for! The LOreal Paris Revitalift line is innovative, it works with 8 natural lifters to improve the elasticity and reveal smoother, firmer skin! It also provides all day hydration and prevents dryness.

Use every morning, either alone or under makeup.

What I love about this is you can use the anti-wrinkle and firming cream under your makeup if you want. So when you get up apply the cream and wait maybe five minutes and then apply your makeup! I love my Too Faced Born this Way foundation, it has great coverage! It is Fortified with Pro-Retinol A and Stimuplex, cell turnover is increased, wrinkles are reduced, skin is firmer and hydrated.

Researchers say at the age of 25 you should have already started using a anti-wrinkle cream. It is better to keep the wrinkles at bay instead of trying to get rid of them once they show up! I am not always the best at washing my face at night and drinking enough water, but I am trying to do better!

L’Oreal Paris RevitaLift Anti Wrinkle + Firming Face/Neck Contour Cream

I hope you all enjoy this review and would love for you to try it and share your thoughts with me!

Bar Keepers Friend Cleaner

Felicia Snodgrass Household Goods, Products We Tried August 25, 2017September 22, 2017bar keepers friend, bar keepers friend cleaner, best cleaner, cleaning, household cleaner 0 Comment

Say Goodbye to Those Nasty Stains with Bar Keepers Friend Cleaner

We all know that cleaning can be so much work! Bar Keepers Friend Cleaner can make your life so much easier. Plus, you will have a friend for life! We were getting ready to remodel our 70’s style kitchen a couple of years ago and my husband wanted a porcelain sink. Almost every home we have lived in previously had a porcelain sink and I hated them all! They would get black and gray marks, rust marks and they just never looked clean. I would bleach them to no end and never could get them to look white. Then one day I was introduced to Bar Keepers Friend Cleaner and I fell in love!

You can use this stuff on so many things and it cuts grease and other unsightly stains like no other. Imagine cleaning your pots and pans and have them so clean they look new again. It works! Clean your bathtub, your porcelain sink, your stainless steel sink and even your glass top stove. I am sure there are many other things you can use it on as well, those are just the way I use it.

As you can see from the photo above, my sink gets pretty messed up! Lots of rusty stains and those awful black marks. Yuck! These types of stains absolutely drive me crazy. If you ask my husband he will say that’s not hard to do!

To use Bar Keepers Friend Cleaner just wet the area down and sprinkle the powder on what you want to clean. They do make a liquid cleaner as well, but I am not as big of a fan. I prefer the powder cleaner so much more. Anyway, once you sprinkle it on you can start scrubbing lightly with a sponge. I prefer the Scotch Brite Sponges for all of my cleaning. Then you just rinse it off. It’s that easy! For stubborn stains you can clean it several times until the stain is gone.

Bring the Sparkle and Shine back with Bar Keepers Friend Cleaner

You can see the difference in these photos. After using the Bar Keepers Friend Cleaner it is like night and day difference. Another way I use it is on my glass top stove. You know how you get that dark ring around the burners? Well, I just use the cleaner the same way and scrub it off with a sponge. It is like magic! This cleaner is inexpensive, so it won’t break the bank and it takes the headache out of cleaning.

It’s important to note if you clean something like a stove, make sure you get all the cleaner off pretty quickly. It can damage the paint finish and you certainly don’t want that.

Hope you can get some enjoyment out of Bar Keepers Friend Cleaner the way I have!

Too Faced Born This Way Foundation Review – FLAWLESS Looking Skin

Kelsey Beauty, Products We Tried October 8, 2016October 8, 2016foundation review, medium to full coverage, Too Faced Born This Way Foundation, Too Faced Born This Way Foundation review 0 Comment

Too Faced Foundation Review

I am a huge fan of makeup, and I know that every now and again I need to splurge and buy some amazing foundation and that is exactly what I did recently! I bought the Too Faced Born This Way Foundation and I am absolutely loving it. I have tried other foundations from the Too Faced line but not the Born this Way, and I am so glad I got this! This is a medium to full coverage foundation, which means it is a little bit heavier. I love wearing this in the cooler months as you don’t sweat as much and a thicker foundation works nicely!

In a Hurry, buy the foundation by clicking here!

Too Faced Born This Way Foundation

Here is a pic of me wearing the foundation along with my regular makeup. As you can see it does give a nice coverage on the skin. I have some blemishes and show a lot of red on my cheeks and nose area without makeup. I wish I had flawless skin without makeup but I don’t. That is why I like a medium to full coverage, so it helps hide my imperfections a little bit better! The foundation goes on so smooth, I use my beauty blender or a kabuki brush to apply it, and that seems to give a nice even layer over the skin and doesn’t leave any lines.

beautyblender Too Faced Born This Way Foundation Kabuki Foundation Brush

It does have a pump top, so you just pump out the foundation vs pouring it out of a bottle which is so nice! One pump is enough to cover my whole face, so it goes a long way! I truly can’t rave enough about this foundation! It is a little pricey but it is worth the money if you want to have a nice foundation! I can’t always afford it, but when I splurge I for sure go for the Too Faced brand, I love their products!

After Wearing the Born This Way Foundation All Day

This is me after the day is starting to come to an end, I had been wearing it for around 7 hours at this point. It did a great job holding up throughout the day! I am very impressed with how awesome this foundation is! If you are looking for a great foundation look no further everyone!

Also check out the Mary Kay Lash Intensity Mascara my sister is loving!

Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe

Felicia Snodgrass Dinner, Freezer Meals, Pasta October 6, 2016September 3, 2017crowd pleasing, Easy Meat Stuffed Shells, Easy Pasta Recipe, Easy Stuffed Shells, freezer meal, funeral food, Jumbo Pasta Shells, new baby meal, Pasta, Sausage Recipe, Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe 0 Comment

Amazing Sausage Stuffed Jumbo Shells Recipe

Enjoy Italian food heaven with this Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe. You can’t go wrong with this delicious recipe. The spices and sauce blend well and leave you begging for more.

Lasagna is a favorite in our household, but sometimes we want something a little different. Once we were invited to some friends house for dinner and the hostess served us Sausage Stuffed Shells. I immediately fell in love at the very first bite. The sausage just takes the pasta dish to a whole new level. My mouth is watering, just thinking about it!

The Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe has become a staple in our home. We make sure to keep it in our rotation of regular meals.

Make the Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe as a Freezer Meal

Finding freezer meals that actually taste good can sometimes be difficult. I recommend if you plan to use it as a freezer meal, to make sure and thaw it properly or it will take forever to cook. I made the mistake of taking out of the freezer at lunch and trying to cook it for supper and it was sort of a disaster! Best case scenario is to place it in the fridge the night before you plan to bake it.

It is a great meal gift! The Sausage Stuffed Shells are also a wonderful meal for someone who just had a baby, a college kid or someone who had a death in the family recently. They can eat it right way or toss it in the freezer for an easy meal later on. Plus, this meal is a little different that the normal casseroles and regular lasagna’s people normally give. People love this meal, so except lots of compliments and people asking for the recipe.

The thing I love the most about this Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe (besides the sausage) is the cheese! I love the cottage cheese with the mozzarella and the Parmesan all together. Cheese is literally one of my favorite foods ever. With this recipe, there is plenty of that gooey and delicious cheese to go around.

You can really personalize these by adding or omitting any of the ingredients. You could add other kinds of cheese, mushrooms, black olives or even diced tomatoes. The options are endless!

Yum

Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe

Ingredients

20 - 25 Jumbo Pasta Shells
1 tbsp salted butter
1 1/2 lbs. sausage
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 - 2 cloves of garlic
1 (12 oz.) can of tomato paste
1 (14 oz.) can of tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 tsp. oregano
2 eggs
3 cups cottage cheese
1 (16 oz.) package of mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp dried parsley
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cracked pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Boil pasta in large pot with water and add salted butter (to prevent sticking). Cook for 5-7 minutes. You want pasta to remain slightly firm and not mushy.
Brown sausage, onions and garlic cloves. Drain meat.
Add tomato sauce, tomato paste, salt, oregano and garlic powder. Simmer for 5 - 7 minutes.
Beat eggs in mixing bowl.
Add cottage cheese, 3/4 of the mozzarella, parmesan cheese, parsley, salt and pepper.
Once shells have finished cooking, add spoonfuls of the cheese mixture to shells.
Place them in 9 x 13 pan.
Pour sausage mixture over the top and bake for 25 - 35 minutes.

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Give These Other Recipes a Try Too!

Great Baby Shower Gifts – My First Holiday Belly Milestones Stickers

Kelsey Baby Essentials, Products We Tried October 4, 2016April 29, 2017Holiday Belly Milestones Stickers, Milestone Stickers for Babies, My First Holiday Stickers 0 Comment

Great Baby Shower Gifts – My First Holiday Belly Milestones Stickers

Look at that handsome boy, ahhh I could stare at these pictures all day! Today I wanted to share these My First Holiday Belly Milestone Stickers and Month by month stickers I have used for Clay! Each holiday you can showcase the My First Christmas, Halloween, etc. And the monthly ones just have how many months they are that month! My sister in law bought these for me when I was pregnant! I have used them through the whole first year, we have this month and Clay will officially be one on the 20th! WOW how time flies!

I love being able to look at the pictures see the stickers and know exactly what month he was or holiday! It is great for the baby books you might create, so you will never forget the day!

In a HURRY? BUY Them Here: http://amzn.to/2dQZbsU

My First Holiday Belly Sticker

As Clay got older, sometimes he didn’t want to have it on his tummy so I would stick it on a stuffed animal, the wall or wherever and it worked fine that way! He always wanted to tear it off when he learned how and eat it! They have so many different designs to choose from when it comes to these stickers, it makes it fit anyones style preference!

Milestone Stickers for Babies

First Year Monthly Month Stickers My First Holiday Monthly Baby Stickers Monthly Holiday Stickers First Holidays Milestones

I wanted to share some of the ones I thought were fun for both monthly and holidays! They have tons more to choose from, and they are very affordable! As you can see I have used them a lot, and I love to recommend these! They truly do make wonderful gifts for expecting moms!

Easy Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe In the Oven!

Kelsey Dinner, Recipes October 2, 2016September 30, 2017Beef Tips, dinner recipes, Easy Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe, easy dinner recipes, No Peek beef tips 4 Comments

No Peek Easy Beef Tips and Gravy – Mouthwatering Good!

If you are looking for an easy beef tips and gravy recipe, look no further! You have come to the right place, have I got a recipe for you that is quick, easy, and delicious! Three of my most favorite things! When the weather gets colder like we have been having on and off, I love to make nice and hearty meals that sticks to your ribs a little bit! Adam works out in the oil field so if it is cold all day, I want him to come home to a hearty and warm meal!

The weather here is on and off, one day it is warmer and the next it is cold. So on the cold days I take advantage of meals like this for him! Cooler days I always whip up lighter meals like a shrimp spring bowl!

This is a NO PEEK recipe, so once it goes in the oven, you just trust it is doing the right thing! You wrap the pan in aluminum foil and you don’t want to peek because all the steam will escape, and you need that to help keep your meat nice and tender!!

We chose to pair this with mashed potatoes, but you can do egg noodles or even rice! I just prefer potatoes, but every now and again I will do egg noodles. I am not the biggest fan of rice, so I never do that.

McCormick Brown Gravy Mix Lipton Recipe Secrets Soup Mix Cream of Mushroom Soup Giorgio Mushrooms, Pieces N Stems Anchor Hocking 3-Quart Glass Baking Dish with Green TrueFit Lid Reynolds Wrap Aluminum Foil

Easy Beef Tips Recipe In the Oven

Ingredients:

2 lb cubed beef stew meat
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 small can of mushrooms (4 oz optional!)
1 cup Ginger ale or water

Instructions:

First off you want to Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Spray your 9×13 pan with cooking spray and then put the beef in. Layer it on the bottom of pan.
Then in a bowl mix up your Ginger Ale, mushroom soup, onion soup and brown gravy. If you opted for mushrooms add those in as well.
Pour the mixture over the meat. And wrap TIGHTLY in aluminum foil.
Bake for 3 hours and NO PEEKING!
Serve with your favorite sides and enjoy!

See simple and easy and yet so satisfying! I hope you enjoy this delicious recipe, I know we do. I don’t make it a ton, not sure why because it is so simple to do!

Stay tuned for more recipes and reviews to come! Happy Sunday everyone!

Yum

Easy Beef Tips And Gravy Recipe

Ingredients

2 lb cubed beef stew meat
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 small can of mushrooms (4 oz optional!)
1 cup Ginger ale or water

Instructions

First off you want to Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Spray your 9x13 pan with cooking spray and then put the beef in. Layer it on the bottom of pan.
Then in a bowl mix up your Ginger Ale, mushroom soup, onion soup and brown gravy. If you opted for mushrooms add those in as well.
Pour the mixture over the meat. And wrap TIGHTLY in aluminum foil.
Bake for 3 hours and NO PEEKING!
Serve with your favorite sides and enjoy!

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VTech Shake and Sounds Learning Pup Video Review Holiday Gift Idea

Kelsey 12 Months and Up, Baby/Kid Toys September 29, 2016shake and sounds learning pup, shake and sounds learning pup by vtech, video review on shake and sounds learning pup, vtech toys 0 Comment

Clay Loves His New Shake and Sounds Learning Pup from Vtech!

We bought Clay this Vtech Shake and Sounds Learning Pup the other day, and he is really enjoying it! We love buying him new toys to help keep his mind learning! This pup offers over 40 songs, melodies, sounds and phrases! We bought this pup because we want Clay to have toys that are interactive, he can learn from, and help stimulate him. Since I am a stay-at-home mom I want to ensure he has fun toys to play with throughout the day!

VTech Shake and Sounds Learning Pup by VTech

In a Hurry?! Buy the Learning Pup by Clicking Here now!

Does the Shake and Sounds Learning Pup Work on Carpet

Here is a little video I did to show you the dog in action! If you can’t view the video above, watch it on YouTube right now! Now, we have carpet in most parts on our house, but the kitchen and hallway both have linoleum, and that is where Clay is playing with the shake and sounds learning pup. We have shorter carpet, and it does not work. It won’t move around, so that is a little disappointing. So if your home has a lot of carpet, you might not buy this toy. The pup will not move around, he just sits up, but doesn’t move.

Vtech Puppy With a Bone Makes Playtime FUN!

On the learning pups back you can see little buttons that can be pushed to make him sing melodies, count and more. It is really neat. This puppy comes with a bone that when you shake it, the puppy will then interact with talking, playing tricks and more. Clay loves holding the bone and shaking it, they have little beads inside that make noise when it gets shaken! It also grabs his attention when he shakes it, and then the dog starts talking. He just lights up from ear to ear! The puppy with a bone really does make it a lot of fun!

Easy Slow Cooker Ribs

Felicia Snodgrass Crockpot/Slow Cooker, Dinner, Recipes September 26, 2016October 6, 2016crockpot, crockpot recipe, easy ribs, easy slow cooker ribs, fall off the bone ribs, pork ribs, pork ribs recipe, ribs, slow cooker recipe, slow cooker ribs 1 Comment

Enjoy These Fall Off The Bone Easy Slow Cooker Ribs

There is nothing more delicious than these Easy Slow Cooker Ribs. They literally fall off the bone, melt in your mouth and provide an explosion of tangy flavors! You can’t go wrong with these Easy Slow Cooker Ribs. They are crowd pleasing, husband pleasing and kid pleasing.

The key to this recipe is that there are no wet ingredients. Simply make a dry rub and put the ribs and place them in the slow cooker standing up. The juice from the ribs will provide the moisture that is needed to make mouth watering ribs. After they are done in the slow cooker, add whatever sauce you prefer then broil them for a few minutes or toss them on the grill for that caramelized sauce flavor.

Don’t Forget to Remove The Membrane

When my husband and I first got married, I tried several times to make ribs with no success. They always were too chewy and I just couldn’t even bite through them. Well, I wasn’t removing the membrane on the back side of the ribs. It’s a gross job, but if you want amazing ribs you just have to do it. I was going to take several photos of my husband removing the membrane on these ribs, but his big arms kind of took over the photos so you can’t see much. In this photo below you can see that pink fleshy layer and that is the membrane. Try to peel it up a little with a knife or push your finger under it to loosen. Then you just peel away. You may get lucky and it will peel in several big pieces or you may have some stubborn stuff that only comes on in small pieces. Either way, don’t give up until it’s gone.

Okay, now that we got that little lesson out of the way we can talk more about those mouth watering Easy Slow Cooker Ribs! There may be different seasonings that you prefer. Don’t hesitate to try out different flavors. I always use Sweet Baby Ray’s sauce, but if you prefer something else then give that a try. Play with the recipe, make it your own. Pair it with this Creamy Coleslaw or this Bacon Bowtie Pasta Salad and you will have a heavenly meal!

The best part about these ribs is that they don’t have to during the summer only. They would make a great addition to your winter meals when you already have out your slow cooker. Hope your family enjoys these Easy Slow Cooker Ribs as much as mine does.

Yum

Easy Slow Cooker Ribs

Ingredients

1/4 cup brown sugar
2 TBSP smoked paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cracked pepper
2 racks of pork ribs (membrane removed)
1/2 cup of Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce

Instructions

Mix all dry ingredients.
Rub both sides of ribs with dry mixture.
Place in slow cooker and try to stand ribs up and lean against the side of slow cooker.
Cook on low 6-8 hours.
Remove ribs carefully.
Brush with Barbecue sauce.
Place on baking sheet and broil for 4-5 minutes. Or finish cooking on the grill for 10 minutes.

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