always - a review

disclaimer - I was provided with a free package of Always Flexi-Style to try out in exchange for an honest review of the product. I also received a $10 LaSenza gift card.

First off I have to say, for the record, I am not a panty liner girl.

Oh no. Wait, what I meant to say first was a warning to any and all boys that may be reading.... this is a post about lady days and lady business so.... nothing to see here, let's move along.

Okay, so where was I? Oh yes..... so not a panty liner girl. I mean I just didn't see the point of them. They are impossibly thin and never stayed where they are supposed to. So when I was contacted about trying out the new Always Flexi-Style my first instinct was to offer up a big thanks, but no thanks. Because as much as I don't have a huge issue with accepting products for review it has to be something I or my family would use or be interested in. So I started to type up my - I appreciate the offer, but - email when I had second thoughts. You see I didn't think the Always maxi pad I reviewed a while back was going to be a big deal either, but it was. Huge! So I thought, let's give it a try. See if the Always folks can wow me again.

And they did. While the panty liner is still impossible thin, this one actually stayed where I stuck it. It's like it became one with my underwear. And, bonus, with it's thin flexible edges that fold it easily fits many different types of undies, from thongs to granny panties. I'm going to have to take their word on the thong part, my unmentionables drawer leans toward the granny panty variety. Actually I love the boy shorts, but grab the briefs during the lady days.

And speaking of my lady days, the Always Flexi-style was perfect for the tail end of them. You know when a tampon is completely out of the question and a regular maxi pad just seems like overkill, but if you're daring and go with just your underwear.... well, we ladies know that's how you end up with "period panties". The ones that only see the light of day once a month or... you know... if you fall behind on the laundry. I will be adding the Always Flexi -Style to my lady days regime. The Always Flexi-Style are now available across Canada at $3.99 for a pack of 50.

Before I wind this up, I bet you're curious about what my underwear choice says about me..... yeah, I knew you were. Apparently by wearing boy shorts I am telling the world that I am a hip and sporty girl. Well I'm not so sure about the sporty part, but I'm definitely hippy. Wait... what? I don't think that's what they meant. I'm also independent and fun. Yeah, fun! I'm definitely fun. And I would choose a day at the beach over a day at the mall. Yeah... not so much. I do enjoy a good day at the mall.

What about my thong wearing friends? Well they're stylish, sexy and confident. And my bikini brief buddies (I'm a 50/50 boy shorts/bikini briefs kinda girl) - we like routine and the comfort of doing what works for us. Well I'd give a big hell ya to that. We enjoy fashion, but value practicality. Yep, sounds about right.

And now if you've made it this far, thanks so much! To reward you I'm offering up that $10 gift card to LaSenza that I mentioned in the disclaimer, so you can buy yourself a pair of panties in your preferred style. And by you I mean my Canadian friends. All I ask is that you leave me a comment either here or on facebook for my "fans" (and by fans I mean my dearest friends and family) or tweet about this post and let me know about it to get yourself another entry.

Good Luck!

let's review - nestea vitao

I am a water girl. Given the choice that's what I pick to drink. I don't like pop at all with the exception of the pop that's in my very delicious punch or topping up my glass of rum slush or the two to three cans of grape crush I indulge in. Even that only amounts to a handful of pop drinking a year.

Of course when I require a beverage with some flavour, that's when I reach for the iced tea. If I'm being picky it has to be Nestea and preferably Nestea zero. I hate wasting calories on drinks when I could be wasting them on the world's best brownies (watch for them on an upcoming WCW!!) or stuffed mushrooms. So you have to know I jumped all over the opportunity to try out Nestea's new Vitao line.

I liked that these teas were a source of antioxidants from the natural green, red and white tea they use in making each flavour. The teas are made with real fruit juice with no artificial colours, flavours or perservatives and only 90 calories per can. They also offer 20% of your daily calcium requirement. Along with a helathy dose of vitamin c (140%) and vitamin e (8%). And now the flavours -- fuji apple green tea, acai blueberry red tea, and mandarin orange white tea.

I feel it's also important to know that in Canada Nestea Vitao is classified as a natural health product and not the run of the mill pop or iced tea you'd grab off the shelf. The tea has been enhanced with vitamins and minerals and is formulated for folks ages 12 and up. So this isn't a drink you should be sharing with the little ones.

That being said how did I like it? Well as much as I don't like pop I don't care much for juice either. Not surprising from an all water, all the time girl. I just find them to be way too sweet. However if I am picking juice it will likely be apple, but even then -- too sweet. So the Fuji Apple with it's light not overly sweet apple taste was a huge hit with me. I had a selection of the drinks out at the last movie night and the ladies that tried it were all in agreement - the fruit flavours were light and refreshing, not overly sweet or overpowering. Mike's favourite was the mandarin orange and neither of us were overly fond of the acai blueberry. It was alright, but I prefer to eat my blueberries rather than drink them.

Nestea is also currently running a Release the Goodness campaign in which they encourage you to Drink Good. Do Good. Repeat.... Each month from now until the end of December they are accepting stories (up to 1000 characters) detailing how you've released the goodness and how you would you use the $5000 "goodness cash" prize. There is a separate contest for each month and you can enter once per contest period. The contest is open to legal residents of Canada 18 years or older. For full contest rules, please see the website.

let's review - pc fresh meat

A while ago I was approached by my buddy at the PR firm asking if I was interested in giving the new President's Choice fresh meat a try.

PC's new line has increased the amount of meat that it's sourcing from Canadian producers. In fact all of the PC Free From chicken is Canadian produced. And what exactly is Free From chicken (or beef or pork for that matter) - the free from line are raised without the use of antibiotics or hormones in the case of the beef. The pork is sourced mainly from small family farms in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta. The air chilled chicken is grain fed - no animal by-products and is Ontario and BC sourced. PC is also carrying a certified Angus Beef line as well. Angus beef must meet 10 strict specifications regarding marbling, carcass weight and defects. The PC tender and tasty line promises a steak house experience at home.

I have to say Mike and I were more than impressed with the quality and the taste of the steak we tried. The marbling was bang on, which made for an incredibly tender and tasty steak. In the past I have been disappointed with steak purchased at the grocery store, but this was some of the best steak we've ever had.

In addition we also received the PC sea salt and peppercorn grinder. I totally love this. It is the perfect ratio of salt to pepper. I really like that it has an easily adjustable grinder since I like a coarse grind to my pepper. And it has a handy snap on cover to keep moisture from getting into your pepper/salt. Triple love it.

reviewing febreeze and mr. clean

Stay tuned for some contest info at the end of this post.

A little while ago I received some Mr. Clean and Febreeze products to try out in return for some honest feedback. So we've had them in the house and I've been testing them out and here's what I think.

While I would prefer these to be green products I did understand when I agreed to take on this project that they were not (although they are phosphate free). I have tried a good many green products, but sometimes I just need a heavy duty cleaner. Case in point, I have yet to find a green toilet bowl cleaner that can measure up to my regular non-green bowl cleaner. On the other hand I have finally found a biodegradable fabric softener that I love. All this to say -- in the words of everybody's favourite little frog -- it ain't easy being green.

Tonight Abby got sick and without going into too much detail she didn't quite make it to the bathroom. She made it within 6 inches of the toilet, but that really wasn't close enough. So now I had a sick little girl on the couch and a mess I could really do without to clean up in the bathroom. The Mr. Clean Extra Power Wipes were a huge help with that project. In no time I had the bathroom cleaned and disinfected and my attention back to the little girl who needed it. I don't use these wipes often, but I find them extremely helpful for situations just like these.

And from the Febreeze camp a little spray of The Air Effects Hawaiian Aloha (there is also a scent inspired by Morocco & Brazil) took care of that lingering odour in the bathroom. The sprays aren't something I use a lot of either, but lets be honest there are times when you need your bathroom to smell -- not like a bathroom.

Now the multi surface spray I like, but it's not exactly setting the world on fire. I mean it's an all purpose spray cleaner. It does what it promises to do. I do find the scent (lavender vanilla) to be overpowering for me. I much prefer the scent (meadows & rain) of the all purpose cleaner in the bottle. I've used it for mopping my floors and was happy with the results, but my green cleaner performs the same, so I'll likely stick with it.

I also tried out the magic eraser. Again not something I use often, but it's great for tackling Maya's artwork on the walls. Which thankfully seems be an urge she's outgrowing. It was also helpful in cleaning up the outdoor toys for spring. Why do they make outside toys out of that heavily textured plastic? A magic eraser definitely makes the job a lot easier.

And now some fun stuff...

Have you heard of a staycation? With the economy being what it is people are opting to spend their vacations *staying* close to home. Febreeze is holding a Staycation to Vacation Sweepstakes. The grand prize being a trip for 4 to one of the Destination Collection inspired locations (Hawaii, Brazil or Morocco) plus $1,000 USD in spending money. There is also 10 prizes of $1,000 USD towards home decor makeover inspired by one of the Destination Collection locations. And 70 weekly prizes of a Destination Collection product. This contest is open to residents of Canada and the US. You can enter here.

This one is for us Canucks -- well our community centres actually. P&G would like to send a team of professional cleaners and a 3 month supply of cleaning products to help get our community centres ready for the busy spring/summer season. The contest is running until May 30 and residents are being called on to vote for the community centre of their choice. In addition P&G will donate $100 worth of cleaning products to all centres participating. Check out Simply Clean Communities Challenge for more info.

And on a totally unrelated topic -- Wednesday May 13th will find butcher attired President's Choice Street teams handing out free exchange coupons (max. value $10) from 4pm - 6 pm at the busiest commuter transit hubs in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Halifax and Calgary.

and now you know

what's cooking wendesday - cinnamon raisin granola

I love granola, but almost never buy it because the ones at the store are usually expensive and full of stuff I don't like. It may seem odd, but it never occured to me to make it myself until I stumbled upon a recipe at allrecipes.com.



Recently I was given a bunch of President's Choice Blue Menu items to review. I haven't made my way through all of it yet, but the Omega Oil is one product I really love. It's a combination of grapeseed, extra virgin olive and flaxseed oils. When I noticed this recipe called for oil I opted to use this instead.



Cinnamon Raisin Granola

4 cups oats
1 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil (I used Omega oil instead)
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup raisins

In a large bowl combine oats and coconut, set aside. In a saucepan combine brown sugar, oil, honey and cinnamon; bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Pour over oat mixture and stir to coat. Spread on a large shallow pan and bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cool, add raisins and store in a airtight container.

Recipe Notes: Well I left out the raisins and the coconut because I don't really care for either. This smelled delicious and Abby was stealing pinches of it as it cooled on the table. I'm not sure why, but it didn't clump together in clusters. I think next time I might slip the boiling process to keep everything stickier and see what that gets me. Unless they are granola makers out there with more experience than I, who can tell me what I'm doing wrong. Abby and I really love it the way it is though. She eats it dry out of the bowl. I like to sprinkled on fruit and yogurt, it's like a cheater fruit crisp.




What is What's Cooking Wednesday and how can I play?

What's cooking Wednesday was born out of a desire to get out of that what's for dinner rut. Playing is easy, on Wednesday post a recipe that has been tried and tested by you and then pop over here and add your name to the Mr. Linky. When entering your name also add the name of the recipe in brackets and make sure you link to your What's Cooking Wednesday post and not just your blog's front page. And don't forget to link back here, the home of What's Cooking Wednesday.

So for example I would write Shan (Speedy Chicken Stir Fry) in the name section. For the URL section I would post this: http://shanrev.blogspot.com/2007/10/whats-cooking-wednesday-speedy-chicken.html

I'll let you in on a little secret, my WCW recipes are almost never made on a Wednesday. So feel free to cook and photograph whenever you have time and join us posting on Wednesday

reviewing dishwasher pouches

I really hate to do dishes, so I have a dishwasher of which Mike and I split the loading/unloading. Although I'm sure we'd both say we do it more than the other. It's not one of those chores either of us like to do, but it's preferable to washing dishes by hand.

Recently I was given a package of Cascade dishwasher pouches to try. As much as I love my dishwasher I hate dishwasher detergent. We used to buy the big pail with the scoop, but I hated to get the soap residue on my fingers. This fact may have not made it onto the 225 things list, but I really hate the feeling of stuff on my hands. Just ick! I also didn't like to inhale the soap fumes as I poured the detergent into the required compartments. Also I felt like I was using way too much soap, but that's what the instructions were so that's what I used.

So is it any surprise that I love these pouches? The soap is fully contained inside a water soluble plastic pouch, so no residue on my fingers. Each pouch is packed with pre-treater, food dissolver, stain fighter, shine sheild and rinse aid. There is no airborne soap to inhale and I'm only using one pouch per load, that's half the soap I would normally use. I really love this product and can't see us going back to a traditional powder or liquid. If I had one complaint, I wish they had a "green" product.

*disclosure -- I was given this product for free to try out in exchange for my honest opinion.

reviewing the brushes

For the past month or so Mike and I have been test driving a couple of Oral B toothbrushes. I asked for his help because I had two brushes and only one mouth. One model had a lot of bell whistles, the other not so much. Being the top notch wife I am, I let my Michael have first dibs. Not surprisingly he went for the plain jane.



So what is the verdict?

Mike loved everything about his model. He liked that there was just a simple on and off button. It was easy to use right out of the package. He said he teeth felt cleaner and he really liked that the vibration wasn't too much. Our last electric toothbrush had too much vibration for him, so using that brush wasn't a pleasant experience. Not so, here. For me the only problem I had with this brush is it doesn't come with any storage. There isn't a place to sit your brush heads if you happen to be sharing the handle with a spouse. Which really isn't much of a complaint I know, but the other model we tested did have storage space and that was kind of nice. All in all it's a great reasonably price electric toothbrush.

Now the one I tested, the Oral B Triumph with Smart Guide is pimped out. It comes with a wireless smart guide timer so you can see how long you've been brushing and know when it's time to move on to the next quadrant. It also has multiple settings (sensitive, massage, clean and polish). I love the charging base and the storage space for extra brush heads that is attached. It comes with a polishing and a floss action brush head. I have to admit I was a bit of skeptic about the floss action brush head, but it works remarkably well. I brushed and then flossed and there was a noticeable difference. Out of the two heads I preferred the floss action head even though it does look a bit intimidating. Surprisingly the polishing head felt a bit too large for my mouth, which is likely all in my head, but still.

Truthfully, for me, it's a lot of stuff for a toothbrush to do. I'd probably be just as happy with Mike's stripped down version. That being said I realize there are people out there that would likely benefit from a toothbrush that can offer you so many options. All in all it's a great toothbrush that I have been more than happy using and I would highly recommend it to anyone in need of a toothbrush with options. If not I suggest the OralB Vitality.

* disclosure -- I received this product for free (for the purpose of reviewing it) in exchange for my honest opinion.