Cast Shadow Studio Review & Giveaway

****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 Cast Shadow Studio for the review & giveaway free of charge.****

My house is much like my blog in being out of the Ordinary, My home is filled with dragons, gargoyles, fairies and more. Recently while I was searching around online I found a wonderful shop called Cast Shadow Studio, that creates and sells a number of Gargoyles and other assorted statues. Cast Shadow is ran by a Artist named Richard Chalifour who is both quite friendly and professional. I have the pleasure of working with Richard on a review and giveaway of one of his Gargoyle statues named Irving.





When I received my package not only did I find a Irving Gargoyle statue but I also received a Vined Dragon Tile. Irving measures approximately 3.5" tall by 1.5" wide with the base being 1.5" Dia. He is the perfect size to sit on your desk, in a planter, or really anywhere you want him displayed. I will be keeping mine on a small ledge above my computer desk. Irving was inspired by one of the many terracotta reliefs that decorate a prewar building, 81 Irving Place, NY. The street is named in honor of the famous author of "Sleepy Hollow" & "Rip Van" Winkle...Washington Irving. "Small Irving", from Cast Shadows Studio, sits at three and a half inches tall upon a one and a half inch diameter base. Each sculpture is individually hand cast and finished so is unique in color and feel. A lot of hard work goes into each and every piece sold by Cast Shadow Studio, you can tell just by looking at his work. Some of the gargoyle statues I have come across do not offer a lot of details since it makes it more difficult to get out of the mold, but the statues and other assorted pieces by Cast Shadow Studio offer a wide variety of details in each piece.





Each piece is light weight but sturdy, I would have no issue putting these on display in my garden because they are high quality and I feel they will withstand the weather. The pieces are smooth and well made, I didn't see a single thing on either piece I didn't like. Above you can find a show case of other items offered by Cast Shadow that I enjoy. The shipping was speedy and it was well packaged, each item was wrapped in foam and set in the center of a stand directly in the center of the box to prevent them from bouncing around or becoming smashed. Another small detail I noticed is that his last name is on each piece which is wonderful for those wanting to know where it came from, and when it was made. I am very happy with both products I received from Cast Shadow and I think you should head over and check them out as well! Their products would make a great new addition to any garden.

PRIZE ALERT:
One lucky reader is going to win a Irving Gargoyle statue of their own!

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

July Orange Glad Sweet Box!

****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 Orange Glad for the review free of charge.****

Whether you are on a diet or not you should allow yourself a treat once in a while, I've cut back drastically on how much I have been eating and the treat I offer myself comes once a month and it is the Orange Glad sweets box a monthly subscription of baked goods and confections. Boxes start at $13 a month plus shipping and handling, You will receive five fantastic treats in the mail each month from a number of wonderful companies.



I recently received the July box and was delighted to see that they added a new feature to their box the treats now come in adorable little bags tied with twine, prior to this month they were still packaged nicely in the box but I find the new bags and twine to be more appealing to the eye. This months box contained the following treats:

•  A Hazelnut cheesecake brownie from Chocolate Maven - This brownie was an ooey gooey delight to eat! It had a rich and creamy taste packed full of flavor, it is one of the best brownies I've had in ages. Even with being made and then shipped to my home it was still moist and tasted as if it was just baked that day.

• A Cranberry muffin top by Seattle's Favorite Gourmet Cookies and Dessert Co. - I didn't personally eat this one my husband and son enjoyed this together, I was told it had a spongy texture that gave it that light fluffiness like pancakes.

•  A bag with two Freedom star sugar cookies from Gianna's Homemade Baked Goods - They look as if they would be the harder version of sugar cookies but once you take a bite you find that they are soft and melt in your mouth. They were covered in colored sugar which gave it a cute look and added some extra sweetness to the cookie. I would purchase these cookies again.

•  A Chocolate Babka from Lily's Bakery Shop - Okay I will admit at first I didn't know what a Babka was to me it just looked like a fancy piece of bread. After trying this out with my kids I found that it is similar to a cinnamon roll just in bread form making it easier to eat. I think this would make a good breakfast treat and would go great with coffee.

• A Ice Dream Sandwich by Orange glad themselves! I only managed to try a bite of this and thought it had a interesting yet satisfying texture to it, it was sweet and decadent. My one and a half year old then promptly devoured the rest so I can say he loved it.

I personally think the price is worth what you will receive based on how many products you get and the product size. If you want to buy more of one specific item they have many of the products available for sale directly through their website, otherwise you can visit the sponsor companies website. If you are looking for new subscription boxes to purchase this may be one you want to look into getting.

Easy to make cookies!

Sometimes I will stumble on a Pin on Pintrest that I love and save for later so that I 'might' get around to it. We have all seen some of the pintrest fails out there mainly when it comes to cakes. However not everything comes out as a Pintrest fail some of them are quite easy even for a beginner baker & I want to share one of my favorite recipes I found on Pintrest with you.

What do you need? 2 Ripe bananas, 1 cup of oat meal or quick oats, 1/2 a cup of Chocolate chips, And 1 heaping spoonful of natural peanut butter along with a baking pan, spatula and large mixing bowl. If you are a parent there is a good chance you have all of these items sitting in your kitchen already. Instead of chocolate chips you can use M&M's or another type of chocolate you prefer and the oatmeal can be any flavor you want.

Easy to follow steps:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees while you prep your cookies.

1. Pour 1 cup of oat meal into a bowl. (I find that 2-3 packets of oatmeal works well.)

2. Mix in the two ripe banana's don't worry about large chunks they will work themselves out.

3. Mix in 1 heaping spoonful of Peanut butter and 1/2 a cup of chocolate chips (You can see we used M&M's)

4. Once it is all mixed place into even proportions on the baking pan, You DO NOT need to grease the pan. The peanut butter will prevent them from sticking to the pan.

5. Place in oven at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.

This recipes makes 5-8 small cookies, if you have a large family I suggest doubling the amounts. I have found you do not have to follow this to the exact instruction, you can add more oatmeal for a thicker cookie or even to make a breakfast bar, you can add less peanut butter or more chocolate.

When you are finished your cookies should look similar to those pictured above. This is a great way to use bananas that are going bad or a healthy alternative to traditional cookies since it doesn't have as much sugar. I am sorry I can't link to a source for the recipe as there isn't one attached to the photo pin on pintrest. If you end up making these leave me a comment letting me know how your family likes them, mine love them!

Orange Glad 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 Orange Glad for the review free of charge.****

I know I should avoid sweets but sometimes they are too tempting, One of the reasons why is a monthly dessert subscription box called Orange Glad. Every month you are sent a little orange package which contains 5 gourmet treats that vary from cookies to fudge or chocolate covered marshmallows. My kids became quite excited when they seen the box arrive in the mail, We try not to buy sweets at the store so the kids love when they do get something special to eat. Want to order dessert online but your afraid of how the condition will be when it reaches you? Don't be! When they send products with chocolate or other melt-able components they package it in a Ice pack so that it is in perfect condition when it arrives.



The May 2014 box included: A S'mores cookie by Baking Betty's, A peanut butter cup cookie also by Baking Betty's, A Italian Butterhorn by Cici's Italian butterhorns, A Orange cranberry welsh cake from Welsh cakes and a Gluten-Free Ultimate brownie by the Fine Sconehenge baking company. Each box also includes a post card that shows a photo of each product with a description, ingredients list and a suggested "Eat by date" which comes in handy for those with allergies. The morning after the box arrived I had the Italian butterhorn with my morning coffee they are tasty and not overly sweet, they reminded me of a cinnamon roll in crescent form. They can be consumed alone but I would suggest eating them with a cup of coffee, milk or hot coco. My kids really enjoyed the cookies that were in the box they each had half of each, from their thoughts on them the S'mores cookie was the best. My husband enjoyed the welsh cakes, they were quite different from your every day cookie I had a bite of one and the texture reminded me of a mixture between a English muffin and a cookie. The last thing we tried was the brownie which my husband and I split, it was quite delicious I hadn't realized until we finished that it was Gluten free it tasted lighter than a regular brownie but still just as sweet.

The Orange Glad box cost $15 a month plus Shipping and Handling, Keep in mind the cost covers not only the sweets but the packing supplies as well which keep your treats fresh on their way to you. If you are looking for a personal gift they have a gift giving option which allows you to send a single package or 3-6 month subscription to someone you know. I personally think the price is worth what you will receive based on how many products you get and the product size. If you want to buy more of one specific item they have many of the products available for sale directly through their website, otherwise you can visit the sponsor companies website. If you are looking for new subscription boxes to purchase this may be one you want to look into getting.

Birthday Madness!

First I would like to say I am sorry I have been away, The last month was spent working and looking at new homes that were potentials for renting. We are now moved into our new home, have unpacked and I am ready to jump back into blogging action.

Today is my Birthday I turned twenty three years old and I wanted to celebrate it with all of you by putting together a giveaway with some of my favorite things: Makeup, Bath goods & jewelry. My daughter is five years old and she is the sweetest little thing, she was the 'Party planner' and had my mother pick up the party good for her, she made me the most adorable birthday card and even put a dollar in it which is simply adorable.

The prizes included are:

A Pearl Paradise Pearl Necklace
 88 Color Eye shadow Palette
Soothing Botanicals Bath Salts
Soothing Botanicals Lotion
Soothing Botanicals Body Scrub
DKNY Purfume sample
Mia Mariu lip gloss in Romance
MLP Soap
China Glaze Ruby Slippers in Mini
Madison Street Beauty full sized eyeshadow
Mattify Cosmetics full sized eyeshadow
Various samples

As the giveaway grows I may add extra goodies to the prize pack.



You are free to enter using the rafflecopter form below, this is open World Wide. Keep your eyes open for reivews and giveaways heading your way soon, I have posts to catch up on as well as new content to offer you! Thank you for sticking with me :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Geek Fire Labs 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 Geek Fire Labs for the review free of charge.****

What does a summer in Arizona mean to me? It means dry skin, chapped lips and temperatures that can make you feel like your an ice cream cone melting which means I use a lot of lip balm and lotion to keep my skin in good condition during the summer months. I enjoy uniquely scented and flavors lip balms so when I came across a etsy shop called Geek Fire Labs and started reading the assorted balms they offered I knew I had to try them.



With so many options to choose from it was hard to decide which balm I wanted to try, after clicking around for a while I decided on the Harley Quinn Poison & Ivy Inspired Lip Balm. My package arrived in a timely manner and even had three extra balms included which was quite sweet and I was excited to have them in my balm collection which I am sure won't last long once the summer heat hits and I use them all. The Harley Quinn inspired balm is called "Hey Mistah J" and Smells like warm red velvet cake with smooth, white vanilla frosting it actually does smell how Red Velvet cake does after baking it is a delectable scent. Ivy's Poison smells like a crisp, green apple dipped in ooey-gooey caramel I use this one all of the time! It reminds me of those caramel apple lollipops that you get at Halloween. Each balm comes sealed and ready for use I personally love these balms and have told quite a few people about them, they don't leave your lips with an oily or waxy feeling which I absolutely can not stand in most balms. Head over to Geek Fire Labs and take a look at all of the balms they have to offer you!

Beech-Nut 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 Beech-Nut for the review free of charge.****

My son is a year old and still has baby food from time to time depending on his mood, although he doesn't always enjoy the flavors the baby food comes in. I was recently invited to join a Beech-Nut campaign to review their new line of real food for babies. The slogan is "This is not baby food, This is Real food for babies" I received a cute wooden box with four of the flavors and a small USB drive.

My son really seemed to enjoy the Beech-Nut food for babies his favorite from the four was the Just Honeycrisp Apples which smelled delicious even to me some baby foods I can't stand the smell of but these all have a lovely scent. The only one he didn't seem to like is the Just Spinach, Zucchini & Peas as he has never been a fan of any of the three flavors but I am sure he will grow used to them over time. The jars are just right for a child of an older age since they eat more and the jars are the perfect shape to get all of the food out of without a hassle.



Along with food in jars the new line from Beech-Nut also offers Cereals, Pouches and Classic foods in a variety of flavors, sizes and stages for each development stage your child goes through. I plan on purchasing some of the pouches because they are convenient and almost mess free my kids both love using them. Head over to check out their new selection today to see what they have to offer for you and your child.

Just Honeycrisp Apples

Just Honeycrisp Apples