Snow day = Potato Soup Day

Ok, that title isn't completely true. Soup sounds really good, but I don't have all of the ingredients that I need. I'm actually posting this today as a link-up with Kelly from Kelly's Korner.

One of my favorite kinds of soup is potato soup, but with a special ingredient. My stepmom actually got me hooked on this, and you can't knock it until you try it.

My favorite ingredient in potato soup is...corn! Yep, I'm a corn-lover anyway, but it is so good in potato soup.

Sorry I don't have any pictures yet of this one. 

Potato Soup with Corn

Ingredients

- 8 potatoes (thinly sliced)

- salt (to taste)

- 2 onions (chopped)

- 1 pound frozen yellow corn

 - 1 can of evaporated milk (small can)

- 1 stick of butter

 - pepper (to taste)

- 1 can cream of celery soup (optional) or chopped celery (optional)

Directions

Put the potatoes in a pot with just enough water to cover them. Add the salt and onions. Cook on medium until the potatoes are tender. This will probably only take 10-15 minutes. Once the potatoes are tender, mash them slightly. Next, add the frozen corn, evaporated milk, butter, and pepper. Let this simmer at least until it is heated through. If the soup needs to be thinner, you can add some milk. You may also add celery or cream of celery soup if desired.

Note: You may also put this in your crockpot on low for 4-6 hours.

What's your favorite kind of soup?

There's a "Little Bit of Snow."

There's a "little bit of snow." That's what Eliana says about any amount of snow that we get. It doesn't matter if it's one snowflake or 6 inches (what we currently have)! Anyway, the last couple of days have been snow days around here, and I love it! I should explain why I love it, though, because I understand that many of you do not. I love it because:

1) I work from home and don't have to drive in it.
2) Tanner works for the local university, so if they close he gets to stay home with us!
3) I have a toddler that thinks it's the coolest thing ever!!!

Anyway, the snow was supposed to hit yesterday around lunchtime, so the university made the decision to close at noon the night before it even started! It actually didn't hit until a little bit after that, but I'm not complaining! They were closed today, and we just got the text that said they will be closed tomorrow, too! I am so excited about our 5-day weekend together!

Now what you've all been waiting for. Pictures and videos of Eliana in the snow!

This is how we spent Snow Day #1. Cuddling on the couch, watching movies, and just having fun.

It's really hard to get a clear picture of a toddler riding on her Daddy's back.

This was when the snow first started...around 1:30 pm.

This was around 7:30 pm.

This was at 10:30 pm. As the next picture shows, we were at 5 inches.

This morning.

6 inches as of 9:00 this morning.

And now for the videos! My phone wouldn't let me e-mail them as one video, so they are in smaller clips.

I just wanted to get a shot of her waddling out of the house in all of her layers.

We started going much faster after this initial run, and she wasn't scared at all! She loved it!

What did you do today if you had a snow day?

Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent...Review & Giveaway!

Update #2: Congratulations Brenna Fouts & Serena Milan! You are the winners of the free Purex laundry detergent! I'll get you the coupons soon!

Update: The giveaway works best if you do it from a tablet or computer. Some people have had trouble when using a phone.

I love being a Purex Insider! They keep sending me great products to review and give away, and I am so excited about that! As I promised last week, I'm giving away 2 coupons for a free bottle of Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent. Keep reading to find out about this product and to find out how you can win!

Last week I wrote about making my own laundry detergent. I really started doing that for two reasons:
1) Price
2) I wasn't sure how Eliana's skin would react to products, so I wanted to have a very simple detergent without a lot of chemicals.

However, it does take time to make it (especially the liquid version which is what I prefer). So when I was given a free bottle of Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent to try, I was thrilled! Life has been crazy busy since Christmas, and I am all about time-savers right now!

You should also know a little bit more about my laundry detergent background. Prior to making my own detergent, I was a detergent snob. There was one brand I used my entire life, and I was not really willing to budge on that. Thankfully when Tanner and I got married, he didn't care what brand we used (unlike our toothpaste disagreement...we each have our own). Making my own detergent (and trying to be frugal) has made me less of a detergent snob. I'm willing to try other brands now! All of that to say, I think now I can write an honest review of Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent, but 2 years ago would have been a different story!

So, what do you want in a laundry detergent? I can think of a few things off the top of my head: it cleans well, it smells nice not only initially, but the fresh smell lasts, and it isn't expensive. If you have kids, it's also a bonus if they don't get a rash from it. Here are my thoughts on Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent in each of these categories.

1) Does it clean well?
I've done several loads with this detergent. I'll spare you the details of the first load. Let's just say there was a surprise waiting for me in Eliana's crib when I got her up one morning. Anyway, her pillow case, pajamas, sheets, and toys were DISGUSTING!! As in, I almost just threw them all away and started over. What a great time to test out a new detergent! I'm happy to say that Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent did a fantastic job cleaning these! I didn't use any stain remover because I wanted to see how well the detergent worked. I couldn't find any spots after they had been washed! I didn't take any pictures of this load, for obvious reasons.

I decided to test Purex Fresh Mountain Breeze laundry detergent on a white load. I'll be completely honest, I don't bleach my whites as much as I should. Bleach freaks me out for some reason. Anyway, because of that, my whites end up being not so white anymore. Eliana's socks end up being the worst! I took some before and after pictures to show you how the detergent worked. I can't say it got all of the stains out of my whites, but they did smell nice and fresh!

Before (I promise I really do wash our clothes).

After (Not perfect, but better).

 

2) Does it smell nice?
Words cannot describe how much better the first load smelled after I used this detergent. However, I'm a weirdo and I think the smell was still in my head, so I washed them again just to be sure the smell was completely gone! Keep in mind, I really do think the smell was gone after the first time, but I just had to be completely sure. All of the loads I have done with Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent have smelled great! I love walking into our laundry room and smelling such a fresh aroma!

3) Is it expensive?
The coupon I received was for a free bottle of Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent, but it had a maximum value of $6.00. In the past, I paid $11.97 at Walmart for a bottle that stated it was for 48 loads. This bottle of Purex Mountain Breeze was $5.50 for 66 loads!!! I definitely think that's a better deal! Granted, I can make my own for much less than that, but this is not an expensive detergent!

4) Bonus: It doesn't give Eliana a rash!

Overall, I am quite pleased with Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent! I'm not sure yet, but I could possibly be convinced to stop making my own detergent. That will be determined after I've finished the bottle.



The Giveaway
Now, what you've been waiting for! I am giving away 2 coupons for a free bottle of Purex Mountain Breeze Laundry Detergent! This giveaway will run from today (February 5, 2014) to 11:59 pm on February 11, 2014. A few people had some problems with getting my last giveaway to work, so I will try to post detailed instructions. If you want me to check to make sure your entries have been counted, contact me and I will verify it.

How can you gain entries?
1) Follow me on Twitter (1 entry).
2) Tweet about the giveaway (3 entries). This can be done once per day.
3) Leave a comment on this blog telling me the biggest factor you look for when choosing a detergent (1 entry).
4) Follow me on Instagram (1 entry).
5) Follow me on Pinterest (1 entry).
6) Share one of my Facebook posts about this giveaway (3 entries). This can be done once per day.

How do I enter?
1) Sign-in to the giveaway window below. You can sign-in with your e-mail address or Facebook.
2) Choose which options you want to complete to gain entries. Click the arrow beside each option and complete the task. Be sure to click the button that says something like, "I follow on Twitter."
3) Continue until you have completed all of the tasks that you want to do.
4) Note that some of the tasks you can complete once per day.
5) You can check to see if your entries worked by looking in the upper right corner of the giveaway window. It will tell you how many entries you have earned. Also, if you write a comment on here be sure that it posts.

 I thought I'd throw in an Eliana picture for the grandparents.

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*Purex Laundry Detergent provided me with Purex coupons in exchange for sharing the Purex-Make-A-Wish Campaign. However, all of the opinions expressed here are my own.

Conversations with Eliana...

So here are two of my most recent conversations with Eliana. She seriously cracks me up on a daily basis.

Eliana: "I like school. I like teachers. Ms. Ruth (her teacher). I like boys."

Oh dear. I am not ready for that, yet!!!


Eliana: "I'm going to go to Walmart."
Me: "Oh, what are you going to buy?"
Eliana: "Stuff."
Me: "Like what?"
Eliana: "Mermaids, and Sofia the First, and fish. Mommy can go shopping, too."

Can you tell we've been watching the mermaid episode of Sofia the First over and over and over?

Giveaway Winners - Purex Crystals Fresh Mountain Breeze

Congratulations Cheryl Taylor, Kiley Lintz, and Serena Milan! You each win a free bottle of Purex Crystals Fresh Mountain Breeze! I'll get your coupons to you right away! Stay tuned next week for a giveaway for a free bottle of laundry detergent!

Purex Laundry Crystals...a Giveaway!!!

I recently became a Purex Insider! I am so excited about this because it means I get to try out household products for free!!! If you know me, you know I'm all about good deals, and I think free is the best kind of deal!!! I'm also excited because it means I will occasionally have giveaways for my loyal readers! This is one of those times!!! There is also a sweepstakes from Purex that you can enter with a Grand Prize of $500 or 100 second place winners will receive a coupon for a free bottle of Purex Fresh Mountain Breeze. Just keep reading all the way to the end for the details...

I received a bottle of Purex Crystals (Fresh Mountain Breeze scent) in the mail last week, and I couldn't wait to try them! I've actually had my eye on them in the store for some time, and here's why...

Some of you may know that a few years ago I started making my own laundry detergent. I did this right before Eliana was born for a few reasons: 

1) I was currently paying $11 per bottle of detergent!!! That was ridiculous! I wanted to find ways to save money, and thanks to Pinterest, this was one way that I found.

2) I wanted to wash Eliana's clothes in a safe detergent that hopefully wouldn't cause her to breakout. Keep in mind this was before she was born, so I didn't know how she would react to different detergents. All of the "baby" detergents were expensive, so this seemed like the best choice. By the way, she has never had any problems with my recipe. 

I love making my own detergent, but I'm still perfecting my recipe, which is why I haven't shared it on here yet. My only complaint is that it doesn't have much of a scent. Some people like that. I, however, love getting clothes out of the washer, and smelling a super clean aroma! Thus the reason I've had my eye on the Purex Crystals! I have considered adding them with my detergent as a laundry enhancer for a while, but I didn't know if they were worth the additional cost.

Fast forward to the present. Now you see why I was excited to get these in the mail! I really wanted to try these with my homemade detergent because it doesn't have much of a smell. However, I have a confession to make. The month of January has been crazy, and I ran out of my detergent! I needed to wash some laundry, and I didn't have time to make any, so I bought one of the cheapest bottles I could find at Walmart. I know, I know, I couldn't believe I did it either.

Anyway, the Purex Crystals are super easy to use! You just pour them into your washer with your detergent! That's it!

I love the smell of the Fresh Mountain Breeze scent! I was anxious to see how the clothes smelled after I washed them! When the washer stopped, I was pleased to find that I opened up the door to a wonderful smell! The clothes smelled so clean and fresh! I then placed the clothes in the dryer, and waited to see how they smelled after they were dry.

Now, I'll confess, I've had a pretty bad cold the last few days, so my nose isn't working as well as I had hoped it would for this review. That being said, I was still quite pleased with the Purex Crystals. I wore a shirt yesterday that was in the load that I washed with them, and throughout the day I caught little whiffs of the Fresh Mountain Breeze scent. I am looking forward to seeing how long the smell lasts. I'll try to write an update once I know. So there you have it...even with a stuffy nose, I thought the Purex Crystals did a great job of freshening the laundry!

Now, I promised a giveaway! Purex has given me 3 coupons for a free bottle of Purex Crystals Fresh Mountain Breeze. This giveaway will run today (Monday, January 27, 2013) through Thursday, January 30, 2013 at 11:59 pm. Here are the ways that you can earn entries for the giveaway, just log-in to the link below:

1) Follow me on Twitter (bucgal83). This is worth 2 entries.
2) Tweet about this giveaway. You can do this once per day. This is worth 1 entry each time you do it.
3) Leave a comment on this blog post. Tell me why you want to try this laundry enhancer. This is worth 1 entry.
4) Follow me on Instagram (Bucgal83). This is worth 2 entries. Once you follow me, post your user name so I can verify it.
5) Follow me on Pinterest (Bucgal83). This is worth 2 entries. Once you follow me, post your user name so I can verify it.

Rules:
- No duplicate comments.
- This giveaway is open to United States residents age 18 or older. Winner will be selected via random draw and will be notified via e-mail or whatever social media site you provide. You will have 72 hours to claim the prize or I will select a new winner.

This is the first time I have used this giveaway site, so please let me know if something isn't working properly. Thanks!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


There is also a sweepstakes you can enter for a chance at $500 or a bottle of Purex Crystals Fresh Mountain Breeze. You can use this link to enter the Over The Mountain And Through The Woods Sweepstakes from Purex.

Please note: The Purex brand provided me with a sample of Purex Crystals Fresh Mountain Breeze in exchange for a product review. However, all the opinions expressed here are my own.

2014 Goals! (I'm not calling them Resolutions)

I know I'm a day late on this, but that's what strep will do to you. Yuck.

I've never been very good at sticking to my New Year's Resolutions, but I do have some serious goals that I want to work on whether it is a new year or not. I thought that if I put them on my blog I may feel a little more pressure to complete them. So here you go...if you can handle reading all of this.

1. Read through the Bible. Man. This is literally on my list every year. I will eventually accomplish it. Hopefully, if it is on here I'll feel like I will be held accountable for it.

2. Talk to more people about Jesus! This one is harder than it should be for me. I have been given the best gift I could ever get (eternal life with my Savior)…why don’t I tell more people about this?

3. Be a better wife. I know what you’ll say when you read this. Oh, I’m sure you’re a great wife. You know what, though? I think I can always be better. My husband is wonderful, and I need to act like it more.

4. Be a better mom. Same as above. I mean really, look at this face.

5. Get and stay organized. I love organization! I love anything that helps me be organized. However, I have a toddler and a husband that aren’t such big fans of it (or at least they aren’t big fans of helping me stay organized). We also live a super busy life, so I need things that help me stay organized quickly! Leave me a comment if you have any tips!

6. Keep the house clean on a regular basis (not just when I know people are coming over). This also goes along with #5.

7. Make some crafts. I have a  “Crafts” board on Pinterest. You can follow me by clicking here. I would love to be able to make some of those crafts.

8. Continue to stick to our Monthly Meal Plan. We have been doing much better about this, but I want to keep it up and improve even more!

9. Blog more frequently.

10. Get a yearly check-up. I have to put this on here so I can be held accountable.

11. Go to the dermatologist. My Papaw found out he had melanoma this past year. His doctor told him that his whole family should get checked because it is genetic. Again, I put that on here so I could be held accountable.

12. Go outside with Eliana more when it is warm. I tend to get busy doing work and don’t go outside enough. I’m hoping this year she can even play in the backyard some while I take my laptop out there and watch her play. However, I do want to make sure that I am playing with her, too.

13. Find more fun things to do with Eliana during the day.

14. Get Eliana out of the breakfast (yogurt) and preschool lunch (pb&j) rut that she is in.

15. Go to Disney World!!! We are doing this later this year, and I am super excited! I have already started researching and looking up tips (it’s what I do…don’t make fun)!

16. Continue to find ways to be frugal!

17. Go to bed earlier. Midnight isn’t cutting it for this 30-year-old.

18. Continue working on turning our basement into a den/playroom.

19. Relax. Try not to feel like you or anyone or anything else has to be perfect. God has everything under control.

        

Did I really just come up with 19 goals for 2014? That is crazy! Hopefully I can follow-through on most of them! Hold me to it!