Product Review: BLOCKIT RFID Blocking Sleeves #BLOCKIT

We went on vacation to South Africa last fall & before we went we switched our debit & credit cards to the ones with the embedded chip so that our cards would work in that country. We protected our cards by always carrying them in an inner pocket of my big travel purse. It worked but it was kind of a pain in the butt to get to them. If we had these RFID Blocking Sleeves from BLOCKIT it would have been so much easier.

I don't really know how these sleeves work but they are designed to protect your privacy & secure your data from digital pickpockets. According to the company the blocking sleeves are made with 3 protective layers. The first layer is an aluminum layer to block 13.56MHz frequencies, the second is a copper substrate layer which blocks all 125kHz & then the outer layer of colorful glossy paper. All I know is that when I put my grocery store loyalty card in the sleeve & held it up to the scanner on the gas pump, it could not be read. So these work!

These blocking sleeves come in a variety of bright colorful designs. I chose the yellow floral top-loading sleeve & the blue floral side-loading sleeve. My cards slide in easily & I can take them back out just as easily. These are so much more attractive than some of the others that I've seen on the market. The only thing that I don't like about them is that they are a bit bulky & don't fit in the credit card slots in my husband's wallet.

You can purchase BLOCKIT RFID Blocking Sleeves on Amazon.

#BLOCKIT

I received this product for the purpose of testing and review. Regardless, I only recommend products that I personally use and believe will be good for my readers. The opinions expressed above are 100% my own and are based on my personal experience and use of the product.

Product Review: Brillante Manual Coffee Grinder #brillantecoffeegrinders

At our house, we start every day with coffee. We always look forward to that first cup to get us going & clear the cobwebs of sleep. I usually buy ground coffee just because I'm basically lazy & it's easy to just open & use but we prefer grinding our own coffee beans for a better tasting cup of coffee. We have an electric coffee grinder but if you press the button longer than a couple of seconds, you end up with dust instead of nicely ground coffee beans. This Brillante Manual Coffee Grinder is exactly what we need to get perfect ground coffee.

This manual coffee grinder is such a simple concept & very easy to use. Just pour your coffee beans into the grinder & attach the crank handle to the top. Now you're ready to grind your coffee!

There is a knob on the underside of the hopper to adjust the grind to your preference. The crank handle is long to give good leverage when you're grinding & the grinder is slim enough to hold comfortably. I found that it was quite easy to grind my coffee beans & didn't take long to fill the bottom of the grinder with perfectly ground coffee. We adjust the grind depending on the method we are going to use to brew our coffee. We use a finer grind to use in our Keurig & a little bit coarser for our French press. I could also use this to grind pepper or spices.

This stainless steel grinder has a sleek modern look that looks great on my kitchen counter. It is easy to clean by washing it with warm soapy water & allowing it to dry before using it again.

If you want to grind coffee beans quickly & easily for that perfect cup of coffee, you can purchase the Brillante Manual Coffee Grinder on Amazon.

#brillantecoffeegrinders

I received this product for the purpose of testing and review. Regardless, I only recommend products that I personally use and believe will be good for my readers. The opinions expressed above are 100% my own and are based on my personal experience and use of the product.

Product Review: 3-Pack Pacifier Clips from Savvy Baby #savvybaby

Pacifier clips are a must for everyone who has a baby. Backtracking to find that pacifier or toy that your child dropped can get frustrating after a while. These cute sets of Pacifier Clips from Savvy Baby will keep your baby's pacifier or favorite toy from getting lost.

These pacifier clips come in sets of three clips in bright & colorful patterns. Each clip is reversible so that there is a color to go with any outfit that your baby wears. The cloth is durable & machine washable. The clips hold tight to whatever I clip them onto so your baby's pacifier or toy is always firmly attached & within reach. Even if your baby doesn't use a pacifier, these clips are handy for keeping track of stuffed animals, bibs, blankets & anything else that babies can lose or throw out of their stroller or car seat.

3-Pack Unisex Pacifier Clips

3-Pack Pacifier Clips for Girls. Pink & Gray.

3-Pack Pacifier Clips for Boys. Blue, Green & Teal.

These cute Pacifier Clip sets would make a great baby shower gift. Any new mom would love to receive a set!

You can purchase these 3-Pack Pacifier Clip sets on Amazon:

3-Pack Pacifier Clips, Unisex.

3-Pack Pacifier Clips for Girls.

3-Pack Pacifier Clips for Boys.

#savvybaby

I received these products for the purpose of testing and review. Regardless, I only recommend products that I have personally used and believe will be good for my readers. The opinions expressed above are 100% my own and are based on my experience and use of the product.

Product Review: Graduation Theme Plastic Table Cover (3-Pack) #GraduationTablecover

It's Graduation time! The little ones are graduating from Kindergarten to elementary school, 5th graders are getting ready for middle school, 8th graders are going to high school (ugh!) & HS Seniors are ready to leave home & go to College. And don't forget those College grads that are ready to start their lives & get real jobs & join the Rat Race! These Graduation Theme Plastic Table Covers are perfect for all of your graduation celebrations!

These come in a package of 3 table covers so you can decorate all of your tables. They are plastic so they are easily wiped clean to reuse again & they are big (54" wide by 108" long) so they will cover even your largest surface. There is a white strip down the middle of each table cover with colorful confetti, diplomas, mortarboards & "Congrats Grad!" down the length of each side.

These are great for graduation parties for all ages. The table covers are not those flimsy paper covers that you can get at the dollar stores. These are a thin plastic that took some abuse & never ripped or showed any damage. These colorful table covers can be used again & again.

I also saw plates, napkins & banners that match these table covers so you can have a complete Graduation theme for your student. The Graduation Theme Plastic Table Covers are available on Amazon.

#GraduationTablecover

I received this product for the purpose of testing and review. Regardless, I only recommend products that I personally use and believe will be good for my readers. The opinions expressed above are 100% my own and are based on my personal experience and use of the product.

Product Review: Coosh Upper Arm Blood Pressure Monitor #Coosh

Blood pressure is something that is important to be aware of & monitor to stay healthy. My husband was diagnosed with high blood pressure & put on medication. After that happened, he made a point of checking his blood pressure every time we were in a drug or grocery store. But those blood pressure machines are probably not very accurate because we always see kids playing on them, kicking & pushing the buttons & generally mistreating the machines. So having this Coosh Upper Arm Blood Pressure Monitor gives us much more confidence that the readings will be correct.

This blood pressure monitor comes with the monitor, an arm cuff, a zipper storage case & instruction manual. The monitor operates on 4 AA batteries (not included) which are easily installed by removing the battery cover on the back. The arm cuff attaches to the monitor by connecting the air connector plug to the side. Once the monitor is turned on, you can set the month, day & time. Your blood pressure readings will be saved in the Memory so that you can review them.

My husband used this blood pressure monitor with absolutely no trouble at all. But when I used it, I got an "E1" error message twice in a row. According to the manual, this means that the unit can't normally increase pressure. My husband said it was probably because I didn't have the cuff tight enough to begin with. By the time I got a reading (see above) it was in the yellow range. I'm sure if I had taken a few minutes to breathe & then tried again, it would have been my normal good readings.

This is a nice home health tool to have available for daily monitoring, especially if you have been diagnosed with high blood pressure.

You can purchase the Coosh Upper Arm Blood Pressure Monitor on Amazon.

#Coosh

I received this product for the purpose of testing and review. Regardless, I only recommend products that I personally use and believe will be good for my readers. The opinions expressed above are 100% my own and are based on my personal experience and use of the product.

Product Review: Vita Sciences Natural Muscle & Joint Pain Relief #JointRight

I get aches & pains from time to time depending on what activity I'm participating in that maybe I haven't done for a while. The first time we go to the hiking trails when the weather is nice, I usually come home with sore legs & feet. Or if I am really enjoying a new workout, I tend to overdo it & end up with sore muscles. That is when Vita Sciences Natural Muscle & Joint Pain Relief will be helpful.

This white cream comes in a 1.7 fluid ounce airless pump container & each bottle contains 30 doses. It is intended for temporary relief of minor aches & joint tenderness. It is made with aloe, Vitamin E & chamomile to also moisturize your skin as it is relieving aches & pains. It has a slight menthol scent but it's not noticeable after I apply the cream.

The instructions say to apply one dose (2 pumps) to the affected joint no more than 6 times each day. The cream feels cool when I apply it & gets warm as I rub it into my skin. It has a bit of a gritty feeling at first but not after it is absorbed. I've used it on my shoulders when I sleep crooked, on my biceps & thighs when I try new yoga poses & overdo it, on my lower back when I've been standing too long & on my knees when I work on my computer too long (because I sit Indian-style on the floor). I don't get immediate relief but within about a half hour I notice that my pain has subsided & I'm feeling better.

I like using a cream instead of taking aspirin or Tylenol like I usually do. And I like using a product that is Made in the U.S.A.

You can purchase Vita Sciences Natural Muscle & Joint Pain Relief on Amazon.

#JointRight

I received this product for the purpose of testing and review. Regardless, I only recommend products that I personally use and believe will be good for my readers. The opinions expressed above are 100% my own and are based on my personal experience and use of the product.

Fresh Chicken from Zaycon Fresh & a Crockpot Recipe

A couple of months ago I found out about Zaycon Fresh. It is a privately owned company from Spokane, Washington that delivers fresh meat & seafood directly to consumers (that's me & you!) at wholesale prices. I immediately pulled up their website to see if they delivered anywhere near my house & I was very happy to see a delivery site that is only a few miles away!

Zaycon Fresh has sales events about once a month. For example, my location has an event in July to purchase Patio Steaks & Chicken Fritters. But then there is not another event until August when fresh ground beef will be available. All of the products are sold by the case & some of it is much more than I can use or will fit into my freezer. This is when a chest freezer comes in handy or at least a friend who is willing to split a case.

My first experience with Zaycon Fresh was last month when I purchased a case of fresh chicken. I couldn't pass it up because it was only $1.69 a pound!!! I didn't know what to expect but it was so quick & easy! I made my purchase on the website & printed my confirmation. The day of the delivery, I drove to the site & the Zaycon delivery truck was already there. The two men who were working checked my name against their records & then spread a sheet of plastic in the trunk of my car & loaded the case of chicken for me. I never even got out of the car! All I had to do was take it home, trim it & package it for freezing.

This is the 40 pound case of chicken with 

the plastic sheet from the trunk of my car.

When I took the top off of the box, the chicken was wrapped in more plastic.

The chicken was packaged in four 10-pound bags.

I moved the bags into a cooler so that the chicken would stay 

cold while I was trimming & getting it ready for my freezer.

This is a chicken breast on an 11" diameter 

plate before I cut it in half & trimmed it!

About 2 hours later, the chicken was trimmed & bagged. 

This is what 40 pounds of chicken looks like in my freezer!

When I buy chicken from the grocery store, I put 5 chicken breasts in each storage bag. Because these are so large, I only packaged 3 in each storage bag. 

Now that I've got all of this chicken in my freezer, I'm going to need some new chicken recipes. I've found a few but I also have our favorites that make the menu rotation about once a month. This is one of them & it is in my crockpot right now:

Applesauce BBQ Crockpot Chicken

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts (I only used 3 since these are big)

2/3 cup chunky applesauce

2/3 cup BBQ sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ)

2 T brown sugar

1 t chili powder

1/2 t ground pepper

Instructions:

Spray crockpot with non-stick cooking spray or use a crockpot liner.

Place chicken breasts on bottom of crockpot.

Mix remaining ingredients together & pour over chicken.

Cook 6 - 8 hours on Low setting.

I sometimes serve this chicken over rice but tonight we're having Garlic Mashed Potatoes & Roasted Brussels Sprouts.

If you have a favorite chicken recipe, please share it with me in the Comments below. I'm always looking for new ideas!