Lucas Oil Drag Boat World Finals in AZ!

***This is not a paid post, I will be receiving complimented tickets in exchange for this post. All opinions about this show are my own and may vary from others.****

It is finally getting cool enough out that out-door events sound like a good idea, because you won't be attacked by bugs and you won't  melt from the heat. Next month the 33rd Annual Lucas Oil Drag Boat World Finals is heading to Arizona, and you don't want to miss out on all the fast action.

Here is all the information you need on this Event:

WHAT: 

As the granddaddy event for all boat racing, the 33rd Annual Lucas Oil Drag Boat
World Finals brings together hundreds of boats from all over the country to Arizona
for the Season Finale. Three full days of side by side, 8000 horsepower racing action
that tops out faster than 260MPH on the liquid quarter-mile will include multiple
classes competing at the highest levels in professional boat motorsports. Top Fuel
Hydro, Top Alcohol Hydro, Top Alcohol Flat and Pro-Modified classes will provide a
“must see” show as they travel the length of a football field in just 3 seconds pushing
themselves to see who can cross the finish line first and win the title of World Final
Champion!


WHERE: 

Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park (formerly Firebird Lake)
Gate 3 – Spectator parking
Phone # 520-796-5601



WHEN: 

Nov 6-8, 2015
Gates open at 7 a.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday
Racing begins at 9 a.m. daily and continues through dusk


TICKETS: 

Available at the GATE Only
Friday GA is $20 with kids 12 & Under FREE with paid adult
Saturday GA is $30 with kids 12 & Under FREE with paid adult
Sunday GA is $25 with kids 12 & Under FREE with paid adult

Pit Access free to all ticketholders.

FOR ADDITIONAL EVENT INFO – visit www.lucasoildragboats.com

MacDonald's Ranch Review!

****This was not a paid post and my honest opinion was used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. The products mentioned below have been provided by MacDonald's Ranch for the review free of charge.****

October means a month filled with Ghouls, Ghosts, Spooky decorations and Pumpkin patches! My kids love visiting Pumpkin patches and mazes because they have so many fun activities for families to do and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg. This past Sunday my kids and I went to pick up my mother and we headed off to MacDonald's Ranch to spend the day and visit their Pumpkin patch. They are open October 1st to October 31st,2015 from 9AM to 6PM and admission is $10 per person Mon-Fri and $12 on the weekends.





One of the first things you notice as you walk in is that it is set to a Western theme, complete with a gold mine and a sheriffs office which gets the kids excited because it is something new that they don't get to experience every day. MacDonald's Ranch offers quite a bit for the kids to do, we couldn't decide what to do first so we decided to move in a circle to check everything out and see what there was to do. The first thing the kids wanted to do was visit the Petting zoo! if you wanted to feed the animals they had feed available for $3-$5 before you enter the gate. The first thing I noticed when we started into the petting zoo was how clean and well cared for the animals were, I've been to a lot of petting zoo's and I can tell you they aren't all nice, I've seen dirty animals, animals with sores and animals that just look plain nasty but this wasn't the case here. All of the animals look like they are tended to regularly, the goats were clean and pretty soft plus they were extra friendly not a single one tried to nip at our hands or clothing, even the pigs, sheep and donkey were all clean and well groomed, the kids had a lot of fun petting and seeing the different animals. Not only were the animals clean but all the games and activities offered were also kept clean, organized and well put together, there were no actual lines but all the kids were really good with taking turns at each game. All of the games around the Ranch are included in the price of the entrance fee, the only thing we paid extra for was the horse rides. The pumpkins and other goodies such as the delicious smelling kettle corn were extra as well, they also had food and drinks for anyone planning on spending a good chunk of their day at the ranch.

The ranch offers a variety of activities including Duck Races, Cow Milking, Conk the Crow, Shooting Gallery, Pedal Carts, Sack races, A hay maze and more which will keep you and your family engaged and entertained. The kids hay maze was fun and the hay stacks were short enough you could send your child in on their own and not have to worry about them getting lost like you would in a corn maze. You can take a wagon or a train for a short ride to their Pumpkin patch where they have pumpkins for sale and a wagon or train will pick you back up and bring you back to the Ranch. If you are hungry or thirsty by the time you come back they have food and drinks to purchase, the Kettle corn smelled heavenly. At the end of the day you can finish your trip off with a ride on a horse, two kids cost only $5 to ride which is a pretty good deal! Overall we enjoyed our time at the ranch, the parking lot was huge and offered plenty of parking, there were tons of people there enjoying the ranch with their kids and there wasn't a single un-happy face in the crowd. The staff were all friendly and helpful, I will be bringing my kids back next year! If you are in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area I recommend visiting MacDonald's Ranch located at 26540 N Scottsdale Rd Scottsdale, AZ look for the Horse and Pumpkin Patch sign located on the North-West side of Scottsdale Road. 

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream VS NYX Cosmetics Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick

I normally don't blog about the personal items I buy, but I usually really love the NYX cosmetics brand and was recently kind of bummed out when I purchased one of their products and wanted to share my experience with you here. I have really been in love with liquid lipsticks lately because I love the way they dry, the way they look and how long they last so I was excited to see that NYX has a few liquid lipstick options.

I originally found the NYX Cosmetics Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick first and wanted to try three shades but couldn't find them in the stores near me, every time I went they were sold out. However I noticed they had another liquid lipstick which is their NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream and decided to pick up a shade called Istanbul along with one called Copenhagen, I love how both shades look and they dried well. I was extra excited when I visited one of my local Ulta's on Friday because they finally had the Liquid Suede in Cookies & Cream that I had been looking for.

 

When I got home I went to try it out right away and found that it is the exact same color as the Sofe Matte Istanbul which was a big disappointment, not just because it was the same shade as the other one I bought but for three other reasons as well. 1.) The NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream has 0.23OZ per lip cream and the Suede only has 0.13OZ although the product packaging is much lager. 2.) The Suede comes with less product for a higher price, the Soft matte is $5.99 and the Suede us $6.99. 3.) The Soft matte smells like cupcakes and the suede has more of a waxy smell to it. As you can see in the photos above based on the packaging they look like two different colors with the cookies & cream being darker and also in a larger tube. Can you tell the different on my lips when I wear both of them at once? My bottom lip is the Cookies & Cream Liquid Suede, and the top is Istanbul sofe matte.

I would suggest checking out the matte lip cream line first because I have a feeling a few of the suede shades will be available in the soft matte and you will get more product that smells better!

Freckled Fawn Review!

****This was not a paid post and my honest opinion was used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. The products mentioned below have been provided by Freckled Fawn for the review free of charge.****

I enjoy doing scrap-booking in my free time, one of my favorite things about scrap-booking is looking around and finding new paper, embellishments, stickers and more to use in my scrap books. I recently found a company called Freckled Fawn who sells a monthly embellishments subscription service that will deliver fun and exciting embellishments and more right to your door.





Each month you will receive an adorable zip-locked pencil bag that is stuffed with goods plus the bags are cute and re-usable which is a major plus in my opinion. I recently received the August & September boxes and I can honestly say I love them both. Shipping was speedy and customer service is friendly and welcoming. The subscription cost $22 a month for a subscription or $27 for a single purchase and the products you receive are well worth the price. I was surprised there were so many goodies stuffed into these bags, I couldn't wait to open them and see what was included.





I received a number of stickers, tape, embellishments and more in each bag and was happy to see so much stuffed into the bags they came in. You will get 9-12 items in each bag plus the bag, I have been re-using my bags as travel makeup bags because they are easy to clean and look cute. My favorite items out of the box are the Heart shaped tape, pearl stickers, the wooden chips shaped like pencils and the deco tape. I look forward to using all of the items in my scrapbooks and didn't find a single item in either of these bags that I didn't like, I think they did a wonderful job putting together a beautiful selection of products. Not only can you purchase a subscription but you can also shop for single products such as deco tape and more by visiting the shop on their site.

Savannah Bee Review!

****This was not a paid post and my honest opinion was used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. The products mentioned below have been provided by Savannah Bee for the review free of charge.****

When it comes to lotion I am rather picky and odd, most lotions I am alright on having on my legs and arms but if the formula is too greasy or too thick I can't stand having it on my hands. Speaking of lotion I recently received a  Honey Body Lotion in the scent Tupelo Honey by a company called Savannah Bee.

The shipping was speedy and the lotion arrived in perfect condition, I enjoy how the packaging looks the way they designed it is eye catching and elegant yet simple. Each tube of body lotions is 8fl OZ and it comes in five different scents which are as follows: Unscented, Tupelo, Orange Blossom, Lemongrass spearmint and Wild Blackberry and they retail for $12 a tube. I do enjoy the formula used for this lotion, it is creamy but not to thick and it spreads well a little goes a long way. However I wasn't crazy about the scent I received, it was an odd mixture of floral scents and something else I can't quite put my finger on if I bought the in a different scent I think it would be perfect. Savannah Bee also sells lip balms, body wash, hand soap and more. To see everything they offer please visit their website.

Halloween Treat Box Giveaway!

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays, I've always enjoyed dressing up but most of all I love decoration, visiting fall festivals and going to haunted houses. In order to celebrate the holiday I want to giveaway a goodie bag to one lucky winner, they may not be Halloween themed but there are some pretty fun treats included in this grab bag. What is your favorite thing about Halloween?





Product List:

Urban Decay Primer Potion 0.06oz Mini
Coastal Scents Revealed 3 Palette 
NYX Wonder pencil in Medium
NYX slim eye liner pencil in Black
Hask Keratin Protein Deep Conditioner
Benefit deluxe sample It's Potent Eye Cream (0.1 oz.)
Pure ICE nail polish
Sweet Fantasy ULTA body wash sample

Retail Value: $65

One lucky winner is going to win all of the goods pictured above! Use the raffle form below to enter the contest and don't forget to come back to claim your daily tweet entries.

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cave Tools Review!

****This was not a paid post and my honest opinion was used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. The products mentioned below have been provided by Cave Tools for the review free of charge.****

It is finally getting cool enough out that we can start BBQing again without feeling like we're going to melt in front of the grill. One of my favorite things to make is Kabob Skewers but I don't make them that often because we have those wooden skewer stakes from the store which can splinter and who wants that in their food? I know I don't so I was excited to receive the chance to review the Kabob Skewers Rack by Cave Tools.





This Kabob Skewer Rack comes with a metal rack along with five metal kabob skewers, each skewer has a metal disk which helps push the food off the skewer while you are eating it so you can get every piece on it. The metal rack has a number of notches which make it to where there are multiple positions so your skewers are evenly cooked. The rack and skewers are dish washer safe and the whole thing is easy to store once you are done using it. When the rack is in use it helps not only cook the kabobs evenly but they never touch the grill which prevents them from burning and sticking. It was easy to put the meat and peppers/onion on the skewer and everything cooked perfectly, I also enjoyed the little metal disk to push the food off because then I didn't have to use my fingers, as an added bonus the skewers won't splinter like your traditional wood skewer plus they are re-usable.You can purchase a Kabob Skewer Rack on Amazon or on the Cave Tools website, feel free to use the following code for 15% Off: LHWJZQMZ the Kabob Rack.

Disney Live! Review

****This was not a paid post and my honest opinion was used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. The products mentioned below have been provided for the review free of charge.****

This last weekend my family and I had the pleasure of attending Disney Live! featuring Three Classic Fairy Tales, Disney Live! was in town for two days only and it was quite an exciting show, you really missed out if you weren't there. I enjoy the area they choose for this event, it had plenty of seating and the sections were easy to find, there were dozens of places to stop for a drink or something to eat and it had A/C which is needed when you are in Arizona. The staff was friendly and helpful when we weren't sure which side of the rail was our section and they made sure that there were people walking around offering drinks and food if you were wanting to buy something. All of the kids were quite anxious for the show to start, I heard plenty of children including my own asking when it was going to start kids will be kids.





The entire show had a very energetic feel to it which made everyone in the audience happy and excited to be at the show, not only were they doing the story of Snow White, Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast but Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Donald were there to host the show which of course made all the kids very excited. I liked that the show was fast paced, kids can get really impatient so if there is a lot of downtime in between each story to reset the stage then the kids will more than likely become bored and upset. Instead of having long breaks between each story they simply closed the curtain for a few moments with Mickey and the gang speaking with the audience while they put up a few new props for the next story the main stage piece which is the stair case you see above stayed on the stage the entire time and it rotated to make it seem like they were going to a new scene, room, etc which I thought was a neat idea. Sadly my two year old was pretty tired and wanted to go home so we weren't able to stay for the last part of the show but we did catch the first two stories which were marvelous! There was thunder and lighting, fire and smoke along with shootings stars and more.

If you or someone you know is a big fan of Disney I suggest looking to see which Disney Live! will be heading to an arena near you. 

Apparel N Bags Review!

****This was not a paid post and my honest opinion was used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. The products mentioned below have been provided by Apparel N Bags  for the review free of charge.****

When my fiance and I go camping or go on vacation we like to make sure we are bringing a sturdy bag with us that can hold all of our belongings and doesn't take up a ton of room by being hard and bulky. I was recently contacted by a company called Apparel N Bags and was asked to do a review of their website, I took a look around and noticed the offer a large selection of bags and clothing all at affordable prices some of them can even be customized.





Their website offers dozens of wonderful backpacks, duffel bags and more, our current travel bag decided it had enough and the strap ripped off the bag so for my review I choose a new bag to replace it. I selected the Port Authority BG1050 Port & Company Improved Two Tone Medium Duffel  BG1050 - Black/Black which sells for $14.38 on their website which is a great price for how large this bag is. The bag arrived in a timely manner and was well packaged, it arrived flat and folded which is great because it tells me that when I need to store this it won't take up that much room. The bag features several pockets and sturdy carrying handles, I am looking forward to using this bag on our next camping trip. I highly enjoy this product and it seems like it will last for several years to come, with the speedy shipping and high quality product I would purchase from this site in the future. They offer hundreds of items all at fantastic prices, you can get athletic clothing starting at just $4.95 a shirt which is a fantastic deal, if you are looking for some new gear to take with you camping, shopping or even to just lounge in I suggest checking out their website to see what they have to offer you and your family.

Tolmachoff Farms Review!

****This was not a paid post and my honest opinion was used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. The products mentioned below have been provided by Tolmachoff Farms  for the review free of charge.****

Every year it is a family tradition of ours to visit at least one farm during October to experience a fall festival or similar Halloween festivities, this year we had the chance to visit a wonderful farm called Tolmachoff Farms. Tolmachoff Farms was easy to locate and had plenty of parking space open for everyone visiting, right away as you pull into the entrance you can see that the farm has a lot to offer including a large market area where you can purchase pumpkins, home made goods and more. When we arrived we had the chance to meet the owner who was really nice and told us about the farm, she was happy to answer any questions we had, then we were on our way to check out the farm.





I've been to a few farms in our state but have to admit that Tolmachoff Farms offers more than any of the others we have visited, I was actually surprised by the amount of things the farm has to offer for family fun. As soon as we walked into the farm we noticed a face painting station, a pumpkin painting area, a play area with a two story play house and large slide, a petting zoo, a corn play box (This was like a sand box, but instead of sand it was dry corn. The kids had a blast playing in this), the farm also offered jump houses, a giant jumping pillow, a Haunted corn maze, a family corn maze which offered a fun scavenger hunt and a smaller kid friendly corn maze that last 3-10 minutes which is perfect for the small tots, a train ride, concession stands and more. Aside from seeing the multiple number of activities the farm had to offer, I also noticed there was plenty of shaded seating for anyone wanting to rest or to sit down and eat once they stop by the concession stands they had near the bounce houses.





The kids were unsure what to do first because there was so much to do so we let them decide on what order to do everything in. Tickets into the farm cost $9 each for ages 2 and up and include most of the activities around the farm, the things that aren't included such as the train are all fairly priced and very affordable for families with more than once child, we paid $2 per ticket for the train ride and the kids had a blast on it. After playing in the corn box, having a race with rubber ducks, visiting all of the cute animals at the petting zoo and taking a ride on the train the kids wanted to go through the corn maze. The corn maze takes 45-60 minutes to complete and they have a fun scavenger hunt to do while you go through the maze, you are given a paper and a pencil before you go in and asked to search for mail boxes and post signs. The mail boxes contain small pieces of a map that you can connect together to find your way out of the maze, and the post signs have an answer to a question that is on your paper. I do have to admit we did get slightly lost in the maze and turned around quite a few times, the maze was quite large and it was a lot of fun to do with the kids. There were employees all over the farm offering help if you needed it and were all happy to answer any questions you wanted to ask, while in the maze we were approached by a few employees asking if we needed any help which I thought was very sweet and awesome of the farm to offer. After the corn maze the kids were tuckered out and ready to go home, so we stopped by the petting zoo one more time then headed home, it was a very enjoyable day and the kids look forward to returning to Tolmachoff Farms again.

Are you in the Phoenix/Glendale or surrounding areas and want to visit the Tolmachoff Farm? The information for their farm is below or you can visit their webstite to find out more about their farm.

October Hours:	Monday - Thursday: 11:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. Friday: 11:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m. Saturday: 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m. Sunday: 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. (last ticket sold 1 hour before closing) We will be open on Columbus Day, 9:00am - 8:00pm
November Hours:	Thursday - Friday: 11:00am - 8:00pm Saturday: 9:00a.m. - 8:00 p.m. Sunday: 9:00a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (last ticket sold 1 hour before closing)
Admission to farm:	$9.00 each ages 2 & up (MasterCard/Visa accepted)
Admission includes:	family & mini maze, petting zoo, jumping pillow, spider web, pedal carts, play areas, bounce house (bounce house weekends only)