Scary Good with She Speaks

I am a HUGE fan of Halloween. From decorating, trick or treating, making "creepy" food & all of the movies. Fortunately, I have passed on my love to my children too. This is our favorite time of year! & this mama is always on the lookout for some new ideas. 

That's where SheSpeaks comes in. First, let me start by sharing a quick rundown about them:

Sign up to join our community and get access to reviews, discussion and SheSpeaks Programs. 

Join in with community and give your feedback in discussion forums, giveaways, reviews, blogs, recipes, twitter parties and your participation will be rewarded with access to our SheSpeaks Product Programs. 

Share It! We love your savvy comments and we ask you to share the collective wisdom of the SheSpeaks community with your network. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.

Now with that said, I'm sure you're going to run right over & sign up if you're not a member already. Right? (hint, hint) & then you can join me & countless others at 9:00 ET for their #scarygood Halloween Twitter party. TONIGHT! (9/13/2012)

The Party Details:

When: TONIGHT Thursday 9/13 at 9pm ET
Where: Twitter - follow hashtag #scarygood
TweetGrid: http://bit.ly/NWTdEC 
Brands: @allyou, @Torani
Party Panelists: @Zipporahs, @lisasamples,@stacieinatlanta, @Childhood 

RSVP to be eligible to win the door prize by commenting with your Twitter handle on our party blog post. 

Twitter Party Prizes:

We're giving out over $500 in prizes - there will be prizes every 10 minutes! You could win our Twitter party door prize - a $250 gift card for all your Halloween supplies!

• Two baskets of chocolate and some candy-themed gifts from Mars
• Four packs of 3 full bottles of Torani Flavored Syrups in caramel apple, pumpkin pie and toasted marshmallow (yum!)
• The DOOR PRIZE $250 Gift Card

Party Topics:

We'll be chatting about Halloween costumes and decorations plus things to make and do for a spooktastic #scarygood Halloween. AllYou editors will be joining the fun to share some of their best and most popular Halloween tips and tricks. You'll also be the first to get the details of a fabulously frightening AllYou Scary Good Sweepstakes with more great Halloween prizes to be won.

To get started, click here to Tweet: "Join me TONIGHT for the #scarygood Halloween Twitter Party w/ @SheSpeaksUp & @allyou 9/13 at 9pm ET! RSVPbit.ly/UHBgZD"

I'm sure we'll have a #scarygood time!

Things are Delish!

I make these Things every now & then & they are absolutely delish! I know, I know. You're wondering what on earth I'm talking about. I'm talking about Things! Here, how about I tell you how to make these Things. Maybe that might clear up a bit of confusion...

Of course I made it a bit more difficult to keep up, since I didn't start picture snapping until the next day. It's OK though, I have complete faith in you.

Fry up some flour tortillas in a Tbsp. or 2 of olive oil. The tortilla will start to bubble while it's cooking, just press down when it starts to puff with a pair of metal tongs. This will make sure it keeps most of it's flat shape. Don't forget to flip & get both sides.

See, you want them to look like that. Better put them on a cookie sheet now though.

Next you're going to spread them with a white sauce. Remember I said I didn't start snapping pictures until the next day? Yep, LEFTOVERS! But don't worry, this is how you make it: Saute 1/2-2/3 C. diced onion in 2 Tbsp. butter or margarine. When the onions are translucent, add 1/3 C. flour. Cook just a bit until you have a nice roux, then add enough milk until you get a pudding like consistency. Although I like mine a bit more like tapioca. 

Now it's time for meat! You're going to brown 1 lb. hamburger with 3/4 C. onion (or more), drain & season to taste taco-ish. Yes, that is now a word. Definition: when you don't have any taco seasoning, you can substitute anything to make it resemble the taste. Hubs had seasoned this, but I believe he used paprika, Cajun spice & cayenne. Whatever you have on hand will work just fine.

Now put a bit (or more) of diced green chilies on top. Yes, the kind from a can. 

Don't forget the cheese! I used cheddar, but whatever you prefer would be fine. Monterey, Colby, pepper jack, all of the above! If you're using a regular salsa or picante sauce, now is the time to add it to your Thing. Then just toss them into a 350 degree oven until your cheese is melty.

Obviously that is minus some salsa or picante sauce. But that's OK because I have...

PICO!!! I made my Pico de Gallo courtesy of my garden (minus the onions). Tomatoes (whichever kinds were red), along with some red & green peppers. Just dice them all up, add some diced onions, salt, pepper & cilantro (fresh is best of you have it, if not, dried works fine). Ideally you want to prepare this the day before to give the flavors enough time to blend. If you are last minute like I usually am, add a touch of lemon or lime juice, shake it up, let it sit 20-30 minutes & call it done. 

Spread your pico, add a dollop (or 3) of sour cream & grab your spatula.

Sprinkle with salt & pepper, grab your fork (precautionary measure), fold if you can & ENJOY! Just don't forget the napkin, you'll need it.

So what do you think about these Things?

eBookFling Giveaway!

Yes, it's that time already! Time for our eBookFling giveaway! What's that you said? You don't know what that is? Well, let me tell you.

eBook Fling provides unlimited swapping between Nook and Kindle owners by just utilizing the lending feature already built into these ebooks.

But how do you use it? 

Join eBook Fling for free by going to eBookFling 

Once you are registered and logged in, at the top, click on My Books.

There will be a search box on this page. Type in the name of any ebooks that you own and click search. Your book will come up and you click on the button that says +My Books. A window will pop up that confirms you are adding this book and asks you if it has ever been loaned before. At that point click Add to My Books. Continue doing this until you have added all of your ebooks.

You can now lend your books out! When you click My Account, it will tell you how many books you have to 'fling'

To 'fling' a book, Click on Active Flings under My Account. You will see a list of books to "instant fling". Click on Fling next to the book that you want to loan. It will bring you to a page that will allow you to either email the book to ebookfling or you can be 'walked through' it with Amazon (easiest). Click on 'walk me through this process'. A new window will open at Amazon.com and have you log in to your account. Amazon will automatically put the email together and all you do is click send! So Simple! Close the amazon window and go back to eBook Fling. The page has changed and now has a button that says "I have sent this book" Click that link and then start over again on your next book!

For each book that you -fling- you get 1 credit. For each credit that you have, you can borrow 1 book!

Now comes the fun part! To borrow a book, simply search for the book that you want to read or go to Instant Downloads at the top of the page and browse! Once you find the book that you want, you can request it (from searching) or you can instantly download it directly to your kindle/nook/ereader!

Each book you borrow gives you 14 days to read it. At that point it is 'returned' to the owner. When you loan an ebook, you will not have access to that book for the 14 days that it is lent out.

Sounds pretty awesome right? Well, how would you like some FREE credits? 3 random entries will be drawn by our Rafflecopter in amounts of 10, 6 & 4 credits. The entries are pretty simple to complete, but please don't forget to share this giveaway on your Facebook wall also. Who knows, maybe we could have another giveaway of some sorts sometime soon...

a Rafflecopter giveaway

We're Having a Giveaway!

Yep, that's right folks! Thanks to a friend, we get to have a giveaway starting at 4 p.m. EST tomorrow (Monday 8/27). 

Guess you'll just have to come back to find out more & to enter for 1 of 3 chances to win!

See you then!

1st Kawasaki Disease Parent Symposium in San Jose, CA

Ok, I know I'm way late on this. School was back in session this week (thank goodness) & I have recovered from summer break. The only thing that would be better, is if I could be in San Jose, CA tomorrow. Why, you ask?

For the 1st Kawasaki Disease Parent Symposium in San Jose, CA. This is truely a remarkable event being brought to you in part by a dear friend & fellow KD mom, Vanessa Gutierrez.

To learn more about Kawasaki Disease please visit The Faces of Kawasaki Disease & The Kawasaki Disease Foundation 

Bella, KD survivor
Read Bella's KD story here

Yusef, KD survivor
Read Yusef's KD story here



Saturday, August 25, 2012 from 1-4 P.M.

Good Samaritan Hospital Auditorium
2425 Samaritan Drive
San Jose, CA 95124
(408) 559-2011

Join KD specialist, Sadeep Shrestha: Assistant Professor, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Alabama-Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, who will be talking about the Genetics of Kawasaki Disease. And Dr Michael Portman: Professor, Attending Cardiologist and Director of Cardiology Research at Seattle Children’s Hospital, who will be speaking about the Paradigms of Kawasaki Disease.

Babysitting will be available.

Contact info:

Vanessa Gutierrez
       kawasakidisease2007@yahoo.com

 Kate Davila
     katedavila@yahoo.com



Paige, my KD survivor

Read Paige's KD story here



BIC Soleil Savvy Razor - Product Review

Being a busy SAHM, I don't know how many times I have "speed shaved" while in the shower. It has always turned terribly. Like when you first learn how to shave, kind of terrible. (I saw you shudder.) But much like puberty, that is an end result that is long gone. Let me first clarify that I do indeed still shave my legs. So, what's the difference you ask? The razor!

I had the courtesy of trying the BIC Soleil Savvy Women's Razor just because I'm a BzzAgent (you've heard that once or twice, I know). The package itself features one disposable handle along with 4 refillable cartridges. Translation: Convenience of a disposable, but with the better shave associated with most cartridge razors. Thus resulting in a smooth,close shave. Which my legs(although not pictured) can certainly attest to. Even after a "speed shave", I ended up with a close shave MINUS nicks & cuts.

“Women will enjoy BIC Soleil Savvy which features 3 flexible blades for a flawlessly smooth shave, lubricating strips with Vitamin E and a pivoting head and rubber grip for ultimate comfort,” said Linda Palladino, senior brand manager – Shavers, BIC Consumer Products USA.

How can you top that? Price! The suggested retail price from BIC is $7.49. Now if you can get your hand on some coupons (like my fortunate friends did), that makes it even better. You can always keep an eye on their Facebook page & at Feel the Soleil for their latest promotions.

So go on, try it & feel for yourself!

**Disclaimer: I received this product from BzzAgent & am simply sharing my opinion which may vary from yours. I was not compensated for this review.

Quaker Soft Baked Banana Nut Bar - Product Review

OK, I know I've been talking about this a lot, but remember that Voxbox I got  from Influenster? Well, I haven't gotten to the most delicious part yet!

Yes, that's the NEW Quaker Soft Baked Banana Nut Bar. Made with real bananas & almonds it truly does taste like fresh made bread, (when popped in the microwave for 10 seconds to warm it up of course). I liked it so much when I tried it, that the next time I went to the store I picked up a box (contains 5 bars). So could you imagine my surprise when I went to go grab a bar & I got the last one? Yep, seems the hubs & kids love them too. 

Contains 5g Fiber

20% daily value of 5 B Vitamins

6g of Protein

*3.5g of total fat per serving

I'm not an expert by any means, but those stats sound pretty good to me.  Do you know what else sounds good to me? A $0.75 OFF coupon. Just click on the box that says 'Get A Coupon' & have your printer ready. You can purchase Quaker Soft Baked Banana Nut Bars at most major retailers for about $3.29 a box. 

Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I received this product from Influenster & am simply sharing my personal opinion which may vary from yours. I was not compensated for this review.