Ghirardelli Chocolate Square Review

I have had Ghiradelli Squares before and they were tasty but I have to say these were decadent.  I received a bag of the Milk and Truffle Squares from SheSpeaks and these did not last more than a day.  These cute little squares are always tempting but these were soo rich in flavor the made a perfect after dinner treat.

They are described by Ghiradelli  as "sumptous truffle filling inside our rich slow-melting milk and dark chocolate"

Although the serving size is three, you really only need one to satisify your chocolate craving.

I gave them to some of my kids friends and  one little girl said, "That is the best Chocolate I have ever had".   When I visit Chicago we definitely make a stop at the Ghiradelli store for a visit but if you can not get there or San Francisco you can find these chocolates at Walgreens, Target and World Cost Market.  They run about 4.99 for a 4.63 oz bag.

They would make a great Valentine's Day Present, Hostess Present or just a treat to keep in your desk.

Thank you SheSpeaks and Ghiradelli for this great sample.

Children Advil $1 off Coupons (4 for one lucky winner)

Children's Advil Mission via @MySmiley360 

When my 5 year old came down with a fever and later Pnuemonia, I grabbed the Children's Advil.  He acted as if he was not sick and his fever was down for several hours.  

Children's Advil

Children’s Advil® and Infants’ Advil®: Provides up to 8 hours of fever relief with just one dose!

Children’s Advil® is the #1 Selling Children’s Fever Brand.** Nothing reduces a fever faster* or keeps it down longer than Children’s Advil®^†. You can feel confident knowing that Children’s Advil® is both safe and effective when used as directed.

Infants’ Advil® Concentrated Drops:
• Ages 6-23 months 
• Reduces fever, relieves minor aches and pains due to the common cold, flu, headaches, and toothaches

Children’s Advil® Suspension Liquid:
• Ages 2-11 years 
• Fever reducer, relives minor aches and pains due to the common cold, flu, sore throat, headaches, and toothaches

^{Purchase additional Infants’ Advil® or Children’s Advil® at your local retail store.} 

• ^{Click here for complete drug facts, uses, warnings, dosing chart and active ingredients.} 
• ^{'Like' Children’s Advil® on Facebook}
• ^{For more information visit www.childrensadvil.com}

Want to win 4 $1 off coupons for Advil so you can try it, just comment below and you can win!!  Ends on Sunday 1/29 5pm EST.

Be sure to Check out our current coupons for Children's Advil® Products.

If you are not already a Smiley360.com member you can join HERE.

^{Questions or comments regarding any Advil® products call toll free 1-800-88ADVIL or1-800-882-3845 Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. EST or ask your pharmacist, doctor or health care professional. 
*Based on reducing fever below 100 degrees F **Among OTC Brands based on 52 weeks ending 10/2/11 †Among leading OTC pain relievers/fever reducers} 
  
In the spirit of full disclosure, Smiley.com provided samples of Infants’ Advil® or Children’s Advil® for me and my family to try. No payment was given and as always, all opinions given here are fully my own
.

Big Shower Big Wet Wipes Review

Fall and Winter marks a muddy and wet time in Richmond.  My kids usually come back from playing in the neighborhood totally full of mud.  Well instead of dragging them into the house all wet, I tried a QWIK shower wipe.  Mainly to get their feet and  hands.

The towels are larger than a baby wipe and a little more durable to wipe off that stubborn mud. Here is the companie's decription: these are individually wrapped 10x12 thick moist wipes with a fresh scent and cleaning power.  Keep them in your purse, locker car and gym bag to use anytime.  These are not little tiny pop up 
wipes!  They're big and thick like a wash cloth.
The cost about a $1 a wipe, less if you buy in larger quantities.

I read that the company I am sure the troops love having these in their packs to feel refreshed for even a few moments while in the field.
I will be keeping some of these in my car for crazy play times and maybe I can use on the dog too!!

To learn more about these products or to purchase go to WWW.quickshower.com

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Lip Armor Review and Amazon GC GIVEAWAY

My kids are always stealing my lip balm or asking for those artificially flavored ones in Candy and Soda Flavors. I was thrilled to find a great product Like All Terrain Lip Armor with all natural ingredients and as a bonus SPF of 25.

The majority of those you find for children are simply flavored and provide no protection from the sun. I was bummed that we received this package after or spring break trip to save those little lips from the sun.

When our sample arrived my children were fighting over which flavor they would test. All Terrain has taken one of its most popular products – Lip Armor with SPF 25, and made it kid friendly with new flavors like Bubble Gum and Cherry.

I was thrilled to find it not dyed and the children said they smelled wonderful and went on smoothly. My daughter has very chapped lips so she is more consistent with using it. More so than my 2 boys of course.

It’s an easy, simple way to keep your lips protected from UVA and UVB rays.

Containing natural ingredients like almond oil, shea butter, beeswax and vitamin E – in short – it’s the perfect healing balm to keep your lips supple no matter what the weather – and now its available in Bubble Gum and Cherry.

All Terrain is made with all natural products and is cruelty free with no testing done on animals.

Check out All Terrain for other great products including all natural Sun Screen and Bug Spray. They are only available at a few stores so check for them online.

One Lucky winner will be picked to receive their own 2 pack of All Terrain. .

In order to enter you must like All Terrain on FACEBOOK and comment on their site. FAcebook

1) You must also follow them on TWitter 1 entry

2) while you are on Twitter Follow me too!! 2 entries

Please leave an email with each entry.

Contest Ends 4/1/11 9pm EST April Fools Day

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

Wine Wear Review-Have you seen these?

I was not sure what to expect when I agreed to do the review for Wine Wear. But just the thought of wine made me happy inside.

Well when I received this cute little guy I was happy once again. After looking at the website, the tuxedo is probably not the cutest of the designs for everyday use but after reviewing it I am thrilled to go out and buy these in the other designs for gifts.

These 3D Wine bottle greeting cards retail for $3.49 and sold at stores such as Walgreens. You just slide them over the bottle of wine and have an instant and spruced up gift!!

Front

Here he is all dressed up!!

Back of Wine Wear

You are not going to be able to write more than to and from but really

what else to you write when you give a bottle of wine. At most just your name on a tag. I have had parties that people may or may not have handed the bottle to me directly and after the party I really don't know who gave me what.

Well with the WIne Wear your bottle will get noticed!!

** Note to self, do not pay more for the Wine Wear card than the bottle of wine! Make sure you want your bottle to get noticed!!

Here are some of the new designs coming in May....see how cute

Visit Wine Wear at their web site, Facebook or follow them on Twitter to see their current styles and where to purchase them.

Jody's Popcorn Review and Discount Code

Here is another review for you.
I was thrilled when I found a gourmet popcorn company in Virginia Beach.  I grew up in Chicago and Garrett's Popcorn was the bomb.  You would get freshly made carmel and cheese popcorn in your bag and it literally had to be pulled away to stop eating.  There was always a line out the door as well.

In the recent years, since moving to the south, the only other gourmet popcorn I have tasted is from the PopCorn Factory.

Jody's Popcorn is in Virginia Beach and looking at their website they have some unique flavors but especially packaging and colored popcorn.  You can get bagged popcorn in many university colors and packaging perfect for those spring grads or High School seniors who are receiving their acceptance letters.

They also offer holiday popcorn as I noticed  a St. Patrick's Day bag as well.  All reasonably priced around $4-5 dollars  for a small bag.

I started the review and then went back to their website and was pleasantly surprised their inspiration was from Chicago as well.  Here is a little blurb from their website:

Jody and her husband, Alan, always enjoyed visiting different resort areas and feasting on fresh caramel corn. In fact, when they lived in Chicago, a great date included a trip to a caramel corn store and a long walk munching on the delicacy.

Alan, who is very creative, incorporated caramel corn into his marriage proposal to Jody. He had her engagement ring sealed inside a prize envelope placed in a Cracker-Jack® box so that Jody could find it. To this day, over 33 years later, Alan still will not divulge the secret of how he got the ring into the box!

When Jody and Alan moved to Virginia Beach, they couldn’t believe that the resort lacked fresh caramel corn. Every summer, Jody knew that visitors to Virginia Beach were missing out!

In 2005 Virginia Beach opened a new luxury Hilton oceanfront hotel with the 31 Ocean Shops across the street. The shops contain unique boutique stores. Alan and Jody decided to bring caramel corn to Virginia Beach at the 31 Ocean Shops. They signed the lease, hired the architect, tried all of the commercial caramel corn recipes, and agreed that they did not have a caramel corn recipe that was good enough!...read more

They also offer holiday popcorn as I noticed  a St. Patrick's Day bag as well.  All reasonably priced around $4-5 dollars  for a small bag.

The folks at Jody's sent us 3 different samples to try out.  Their original Recipe 53 Carmel Corn, Chocolate Drizzled and Funfetti.  We saved them for our Friday movie night.

Verdict, it was not Garrett's popcorn.  Definitely not as fresh tasting but I am not sure what Garrett's would taste like if it was packaged for longer storage.

The chocolate Drizzled by far was our favorite.  The funfetti was enjoyed by the kids but really disliked the Purple kernels.  I tried one of them and it definitely had a weird aftertaste.

Since we are popcorn snobs, I thought I would try it on another test group.  The kids had some friends over the next day and I took out the carmel corn and funfetti.  I liked the chocolate drizzled too much to share!!

The kids enjoyed it but also did not care for that purple colored one??

I think they have a great concept especially with the unique packaging.  They also offer fudge and candy apples. Next time I am in Virginia Beach I am definitely going to visit their oceanfront store.  If you are not in the area visit their website and have some delivered.

The folks at Jody's are offering my readers 15% off their entire purchase just enter REV15 Go visit Jody's now to check out their other selections and let me know what you think.

Brilliant Screen Cleaning Wipes Review and Giveaway

 CLOSED--winner contact me in 48hrs or new winner


first winner was a dud, not really a follower and no email address. never responded here is the new winner
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Jamie Brigham said... 

http://twitter.com/stayclosetohome

over capacity

February 23, 2011 12:59 PM 

Happy Valentine's Day to you. 

Last week I was thrilled to receive my sample of Brilliant screen cleaning wipes.  My husband complains about my computer screen being dirty all the time.  Not quite sure why the kids are even touching the screen but it often has fingerprints on it.  Happy Valentine's Day to you!!

These wipes come with SR-8 which provides gentle, superior  cleaning to any electronic screen and removes dust, dirt, finger prints and makeup while imparting an invisible, durable barrier that protects screens 50x more form scratching. Helps protect against re-soiling to keep your screen brilliantly clean!

Here is their ad:

!

• Cleans and protects monitors, electronics, eyeware and more!
• No Alcohol or Ammonia
• Added scratch resistance with SR-8

Brilliant Screen Cleaning Wipes^TM with SR-8^TM  provides gentle superior cleaning while imparting an invisible durable barrier that resists scratches, soiling and water spots.

Treat Your Lenses with the protection of SR-8

• SR-8 is a Polimer Additive that reduces surface tension making cleaning easier each time it is used.
• SR-8 Coats the lens leaving a protective barrier
• SR-8 Improves scratch resistance
• SR-8 Will not dry out protective coatings

They are also suggested to work well on all type of eyewear.

I also used it on my smart phone.  I had to use the wipes a second time on the computer as it left streaks. However if you cleaned small portions at a time you could get it clean.  They come in individual packets so if you traveled with your laptop/ipad it is convenient to carry around with you.  These are a must have for any touch screen appliance.  The are pretty cheap at $3.99 for a pack of 5.  You can buy your own pack HERE

One lucky reader will their very own 5 pack:

Like Brilliant Screen Cleaning wipes on Facebook
Follow Black Diamond Cleaning products on Twitter-1 entry
Follow Close to Home on GFC--1 entry
Follow CLose to home Reviews GFC--1 entry
Follow Close to home on twitter 1 entry

CONTEST ENDS Wedns 2/23 @ 7pm EST

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.


Sponsored by Tomoson.com

Applied Labels Review

 was just sent a pack of Applied Labels to review.  I ordered them in my daughters name as she did not have any before.

I was thrilled when about the possibilities after watching the how-to video on their website. http://appliedlabels.com/  ,

 Here is the description from their website:

The sleek, clean, sharp, classic alternative to labels that shout.   Our extraordinarily tough labels are dishwasher & laundry safe.  
Award Winning Products.  Lead, BPA & DEHP Free.  Made in the USA!

I thought I would give them a try as it is a product created by a mom to be used by mom's or dad's.

In my package I was sent 60 personalized classic stickies, 30 backs and 15 shoe covers.  They easily come off the sheets like any mailing labels would.

The plain backs are for attaching these to clothes labels.  You put them on the clothing label and when you are done you just cut them and pass on the clothes.  Useful idea!!

They were a little small for some of my daughters jacket labels, especially the LLBean coats.  

We added them to her ice skates to try the shoe covers.  They were not bothersome to her and due to the timeliness of this review I am not sure how long they will stay in place.

We placed them on her thermos and lacrosse stick.  They seem to stay on great.

I have not tried them in the dishwasher as she is not of the age to have sippy cups or bottles:)  VIew HERE

I really like the idea of the bottle labels with dates.  I am sure these would be great help especially if you had a child in daycare.  I also thought these would be great for preschool where you have to date and label all of your snacks!!  They would be great on the ReUsies Snack Bags for this purpose.

The come simply in black and white and have about 19 different icons to choose from.  I think I would buy them for a babygift in the future, and try out the dated labels this time.

Go to  Applied Labels to order your set, they are offering free shipping on certain packages.  Also check out their Facebook Page.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.