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My family goes a lot of places in the warm months. We go to the beach, playgrounds, parks, relative's houses, sports events... we're everywhere. It makes sense that we should bring our own lunches because eating out every day is pretty expensive. If we don't plan right, it takes up a lot of our gas budget and makes us have to cut back on things we want to do.
So I've been collecting lots of lunch containers that I can bring with us this year on our adventures. One of my most recent boxes is this healthy bento lunch box by LunchPal. There's a few things I love about it and a few things I don't so much, so let me tell you about it:
First of all, it's really cute. It's rounded and has an adorable two part fold out handle that's really comfortable to hold and adds to the look when folded down. I love that it has a handle, most lunch boxes don't.
I also love the pressure lock on the top. It holds the lid on tight when pressed down, and releases the lid when popped up. It helps keep it leak-proof and creates less opportunities for splatter when opening the lid while hot foods are in it.
One thing I'm on the fence about is the stainless steel part. Although it's healthy and easy to clean, it eliminates the possibility of microwaving, which is a pretty big con I think since the container itself doesn't keep foods hot. I placed hot food in it and an hour later it was barely warmer than luke warm. It was a bummer for sure. And since the outside is plastic, you can't place it in an oven either. So you're pretty screwed on that part.
Another bummer was that the lid never seemed to go on perfectly the first time. In order to lock it, I often have to adjust it just so, which can be a pain. But if you like cold lunches and are in the market for a new box, this one could be a great one for you.
To learn more, check out LunchPal on Amazon.
Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.
February is here, folks! And if I hadn't lost the W2's, I might be well on my way to a new treadmill by now. Sadly, I need to fins them before I can get the treadmill and run my way to health. But there's no reason that I can't get started on fitness in the meantime. Especially now that I have this cool new suspension strap set from Fitness Answered Training Products.
I do have a wall mount for suspension straps, but what I love about this set is that you don't need one. It makes it so that you can practice anywhere that has a door. As long as you can shut that door, you can work out.
That's because it comes with a neat device that keeps the strap from slipping through the crack of the door jam. you just place the straps over the door while it's attached to that device and it will stay in place.
Tall door? Wall mount secured high up on the wall or even on the ceiling? No problem! It also comes with an extender for when you need some extra length. Not to mention, the straps themselves are adjustable.
The handles are two part handles with both a harder rubber handle for the hands and a lower soft loop for the feet. These straps let you do so much, you can exercise basically any part of your body with your choice of easy or hard work outs.
I am definitely recommending these straps, I love them. To learn more, visit F.A.T. on Amazon.
Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.
I am not good at organization. It's one of my biggest downfalls. I'm bad at record keeping and list making, calendar keeping, and deadlines. I'm just not good. So many times I realize that I st at home while something important was going on that I was supposed to be at, sometimes I realize something is due with only a couple hours to spare, and sometimes I go to cook dinner just to get half way done and fine that a key ingredient has run out and I'd forgotten to grab more. Anyone else? I can't be the only one...
Well luckily on that last one, I have a helper. It's my new Chalkboard Vinyl Contact Paper form Kassa. It's easy to install, a breeze to remove, and can help keep track of what groceries we've run out of. Now, it may not help me remember to pick that item up on my next store run, but I can remember to check the list before starting dinner to make sure my key ingredients aren't on the list of needed items.
It comes in a pretty thick roll that's actually 6 whole feet across by a foot and a half tall. That's enough for a good sized chalkboard inside each of my upper cupboards and one for my fridge to boot! The cupboard boards can help me keep track of easy dinner ideas, like "1 can onion soup, 1 can cream of chicken, meat", or something like that. By the way, that makes an excellent "stroganoff" sauce when that meat is hamburg.
It can be used for pretty much anything though. You can use it for a ton of labels or for the top of a TV tray, the wall of a playroom, etc. Chalkboard is everywhere right now, you can get away with putting it practically anywhere!
The paper came with 5 chalks. I'll be honest and say that two of mine were broken. I won't use them nearly as often as I will use chalk markers anyway, so that didn't matter much to me. What I liked was how the inside of the paper has a grid that makes it really easy to cut straight and to the right size.
To install, you just stick the center of the area to the surface first and then smooth outward toward the edges, getting rid of any bubbles along the way. The curl of the paper made this part a little hard, but not too bad. When done right, it comes out nice and smooth.
I love this paper and I'm glad to have it. to learn more, check out Kassa on Amazon.
Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.
Boogie loves to trace letters and color pictures. He uses up a lot of my ink. It's not just him either, it's all of the girls wanting to color Elsa or Gummy Bear. It can get pretty expensive always replacing the ink when it runs out. Black alone is $15 for a normal sized cartridge and color is about $21 last I checked. For both it's over $30. And if I want XL cartridges so they actually last... the cost is unreal. I can't afford that!
Luckily you can find ink being sold by companies that don't make a big profit from selling you half-cartridges that are easily accessible. One such brand is MX, their inks can be bought online. They don't come on the shelf at your local big box store, so they aim to please. And so far, I'm liking what I see!
I just got their HP 61XL Black ink cartridge for my HP Deskjet 1010. I noticed right away that it was a smidge bigger than my regular HP 61, which makes sense because it's an XL. It fit into my printer perfectly regardless and it printed just fine from the very first page.
When the first page printed, I did get a warning from my computer that the cartridge was "previously used". I assume that means that the cartridge has been refilled, which is fine by me because it avoids waste. Despite the warning, it still printed and didn't give me any issues.
The best part is that this cartridge was $15 for an XL. That definitely beats the price at the store I usually go to. On Amazon, there isn;t tax and if you have Prime, there isn;t shipping or gas money to get to the store. So it's JUST $15. I love that.
I would recommend this to anyone with a Deskjet 1010 or other printer that takes an HP 61 style cartridge.
To learn more, check out MX on Amazon.
Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.
A couple weeks ago, my dog popped my exercise ball. He didn't mean to I suppose, but it was a pretty big bummer. I'd barely had a chance to use it. I had so many plans for it. I was going to go through the whole Stack 52 deck with it. I even matched all my exercise equipment to that ball. But alas, it wasn't meant to be.
Not with that one anyway. I did get a new ball. It's a 65cm Anti-Burst Yoga Ball from Champion's Vitality. It's a beautiful blue ball and it comes with a measuring tape to make sure you fill it to just the right size, as well as the pump and an extra plug.
It was really easy to blow up. You just take it out and unfold it, then let it sit for a couple hours at room temperature. Then you inflate to 75cm, then deflate to 65. To be honest, it is a bit big for my body, 55 is probably ideal for me, but there was only the one size option. Still, I can make it work.
The material is a nice quality material that seems like it would definitely be resistant to bursting, though not puncturing, so I will definitely need to keep this one away from the dog. It is nice and firm when you sit on it, but still has give.
The outside of the ball is lined with ridges to prevent slipping and to help you grip the ball. I think that's a nice feature, especially for exercises that involve holding the ball with your feet. I definitely like this ball and I would recommend it.
To learn more, check out Champion's Vitality on Amazon.
Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.
