Family Stuff - Faith and Family Reviews

Tag Archive for Family Stuff

Coronavirus and Grocery Shopping

Posted by html404 on March 17, 2020
in Family Stuff, Food and Treats, Health, Shopping

The coronavirus has literally changed everything. Grocery shopping, work, school and socializing. We have been sick with coughs, runny noses and headaches for the past couple of weeks. No, I do not think it is the coronavirus, however, we have been staying pretty close to home so we do not spread what we do have.

Coronavirus and Grocery Shopping

Empty store shelves.

In light of this bug and the coronavirus, I decided to try grocery shopping via an express shopping service being offered by one of our grocery stores. By doing this it saved having all of us in the store being sick (except one who has mysteriously remained healthy), or being exposed to other germs while our immune systems are down.

While I am very grateful for the express shopping service, I prefer to shop for myself. Here’s why:

1. The substitutions really did not compare to the original product.

2. Some of the pricing did not match the savings I would have had with the original item.

3. I do not receive a receipt for my shopping trip. Just the credit/debit receipt. How could I confirm my order that had been drastically changed with substitutions and missing itmes?

People are going nuts with hoarding everything from toilet paper, milk to batteries. I could not get a 12 pack of AA batteries (our wireless computer mouse/mice? use them)! Granted, they did substitute it for a 16-pack. Maybe it was because the 12-pack was on sale? But folks, why are they hoarding batteries?

I haven’t been grocery shopping in nearly two weeks and what I had on my list was in line with what I would normally buy, given the sales and the emptiness of certain pantry cupboards. But I could not purchase what I normally buy because people are buying for months, years even, instead of a couple of weeks. The food supply chain has not shut down!

Ok, that was a bit of a rant but I seriously wanted to get that out in the open space that this blog provides. Note to all the hoarders: Save food for those coming behind you for normal every day living!

Maybe this post will come back and bite me, but it is only how I feel today after a not so great grocery shopping experience. Not being able to buy our regular food items will do that to me, wouldn’t it affect you? Is it affecting you?

Share your shopping experiences, what are your stores like, can you get your normal items, etc. in the comment section below.

Stay safe and good health wishes to all!

{No comments}

Getting Back to Blogging

Posted by html404 on March 9, 2020
in Blog Stuff, Family Stuff

Blogging? What is that? Ha ha. It is hard to believe it has been over two years since the last blog post was written. Thank you to the faithful contributors who kept the blog alive up until that point. Life happens. Change occurs. When that happens, blogging takes a back seat to everything else. However, it is time to get some fresh content up on this blog. If the time we sat in front of the editorial calendar is any indication, fresh content will be happening on a regular basis. Ideas are there, they just have to be typed out. Look out blogging world!

Blogging, Life and Friends

Where did everyone go in the last 2-5 years? Life has a way of taking each of us on a journey that is not expected. Families grow, requiring more time of us. People get new jobs or go back to work after being home with young children. Friends come and go. In the midst of life’s difficulties, each of us finds out who our real friends are. The ones who leave, were never really our friends. The ones who stay are to be treasured all the more because they believe in us and hold us up when we can no longer hold ourselves up.

Happy 10th Anniversary and a Fresh Start in 2020

As this blog begins a fresh start in 2020, it is also Faith and Family Reviews ten year anniversary. Happy 10th Anniversary to us! We cannot believe it was ten years ago this blog opened for reviews and so much more. Where did the time go?

It is with a skeletal group of writers that we begin. Who are we? As time unfolds, that will be revealed. For now, it will remain a mystery. Maybe the intrigue will bring us new visitors, who knows?

{No comments}

Cave in Nova Scotia – Wordless Wednesday

Posted by html404 on February 18, 2015
in Family Stuff, Things to Do in Nova Scotia, Travel, Uncategorized, Wordless Wednesday

This is a cave in Nova Scotia. We passed it while traveling to look at a some properties about an hour or two from my mom’s house called Folly Mountain Cave. The children thought it was cool!

{No comments}

Week #44 Saturday Top Five Laughs

Posted by html404 on February 14, 2015
in Animals, Family Stuff, Fun Stuff, Humor, Kids Stuff, Saturday Top Five Laughs, Uncategorized

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Ready to roll with The Mommyhood Chronicles for Saturday Top Five Laughs – week #44 (for us)? Because we are!

5. Child with the quizzes last week added up several quizzes and announces, “If you put them all together, I got 120%!”

4. Jr. wanted to be a tiger so he drew stripes on himself with a pen! Lovely, eh? Yeah, he did whole body coverage, we only took a photo of his arm!

3. On our older daughter’s birthday, our youngest ran into her room and jumped on her saying, “Happy Birthday!” Then he proceeded to ask her to make him a card from him…and she did! lol!

2. When my husband and I did the Pennzoil shop, we walked to get a cart. Hubby got the cart and started back to where I was, in the meantime I had started to walk with another man with a cart, thinking it was him! I looked over and realized it was not my husband and went, “Oh!” He simply said, “Excuse me” to pass by me. I turned and my husband was back a ways. I asked him, “Did you see that?” He said yes, puts his arms out and asks me, “What are you doing?” Then proceeded to teased me. We laughed but I was so embarrassed! I don’t think the strange man realized what I did.

1. When we left the house the cats were on the work horses facing our car in the driveway. When we came back they were facing the exact opposite! Funny cats had not moved other than to turn!

{No comments}

Keep Your Car Running with Pennzoil

Posted by html404 on February 10, 2015
in Automobiles, Automotive, Cars, Family Stuff, Shopping, Uncategorized, Vehicles

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #DropShopandOil #CollectiveBias

Our 2006 Chevy Malibu was long overdue for an oil change so we took it to Walmart’s Auto Center. We had some other shopping to do so it was so easy and convenient to drop the car off, then go about our other shopping. The Auto Center only uses Pennzoil. We asked for Conventional Motor Oil, which is a traditional oil base, with Active Cleaning Agents to continuously prevent dirt and contaminants from creating performance-robbing deposits. We usually get the oil changed when the car tells us it needs to be done. Nice little feature that saves us from having to remember when our last oil change was!

Pennzoil is known to help clean out sludge lesser oils leave behind. It is designed for protection and may enable you to drive an extra 550 miles per year vs. a dirty engine (a dirty engine is NOT good!). Regular oil changes keep your car running smoothly and prevents bad things from happening…like a clogged, dirty engine. Our car is much happier after we get the oil changed!

A funny thing happened to me while we were shopping. When my husband went to get a cart I waited in the front entry way (for some reason hubby did not grab a cart at the Auto Center and we walked all the way around to the front entrance!?). Well, I started walking along side him only to discover the man I was walking with was NOT my husband! Can you say embarrassing? When I looked over at the man I said a quiet, “Oh!” I don’t think he realized what I did because he simply said, “Excuse me” and went on his merry way. Meanwhile, I look back at my husband and asked, “Did you see that?” He said he did and then spreads his arms and goes, “What are you doing walking with another man?” And proceeded to tease me. Probably will not live this one down!

After that embarrassing moment, we were able to get a few groceries and items for our upcoming trip. It was nice to have another the oil change and shopping checked off our to-do list.

If you change your own oil, here is a Pennzoil coupon to use on your next purchase, which is available for a limited time.

How often do you get your car’s oil changed?

{One comment}

BiteSizers

Posted by 278Wife on February 9, 2015
in Family Stuff, Houseware, Kids Stuff, Parenting, Products for Dad, Products for Mom, Reviews, Uncategorized

Meal time is always crazy at my house. With a growing 5 year old boy and an almost 2 year old girl (going on 15), preparing meals is always hectic. I try my best to have them eat what we eat, but sometimes it’s hard. Trying to cut food up into small enough pieces for their liking while they are yelling “I’m hungry, “Is it ready yet”, etc. can make any mom struggle to have a smooth meal time. Anything that makes this part easier, I’m signing up for!

Thank goodness for BiteSizers! Upon first opening they look like everyday scissors. I thought to myself, they’ll probably work the same as kitchen scissors. Guess what? They work a whole lot better! Way better than using a fork a knife. Who would have thought?! Simply take whatever you are eating, use BiteSizers to cut pieces to your liking, and that’s it! I was honestly amazed at how easily it cut through this quesadilla.

I then went on to cut up some cantaloupe. Usually I use a fork and knife to cut fruit up. Using BiteSizers was a whole lot easier. I went from cutting a quesadilla to cantaloupe, and then I cut up a PBJ just for fun. They work on any food that I would ever feed my kids. I love that it has a Snap-On cap to keep the blades good and for easy travel. I can throw them in my diaper bag easily. There’s even a handy built-in sizer guide so you can cut food to the size recommended by experts as best for children.

Since I started using BiteSizers both of my kids have tried more foods than ever. It’s just so easy to cut a little bite off of whatever I’m eating and share with my kids. BiteSizers are available exclusively at

www.mixedpears.com and www.amazon.com

I would highly recommend them to anyone with young children.

“Like” on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/mixedpears
“Follow” on Twitter www.twitter.com/mixedpears
“Follow” on Pinterest http://www.pinterest.com/mixedpears/
“Follow” on Instagram http://instagram.com/mixedpears

{No comments}

Week #43 Saturday Top Five Laughs

Posted by html404 on February 7, 2015
in Family Stuff, Fun Stuff, Humor, Saturday Top Five Laughs, Uncategorized

Ready to roll with The Mommyhood Chronicles for Saturday Top Five Laughs – week #43 (for us)? Because we are!

5. One of our children, whom shall remain nameless, responded to a question in their school work with “something”. Of course it is something! We have a smarty pants on our hands.

4. Here’s how a child filled out a quiz like this:

mm…not sure if they didn’t understand what they were suppose to do or what.

3. Their response to our grading it, “Whatevs”….a classic Robert Gould response. Let’s just say we need an attitude adjustment towards school.

2. One son slicked back his hair like Elvis and was chanting something as he came out of the bathroom.

1. We had friends over on Sunday and our youngest daughter literally picked up their 10 year old son to get him to go in the direction SHE wanted him to go in! Bossy much? She is in the middle of four boys…maybe that enables her bossiness??

{No comments}

New Lip Balm Collection from Mwah

Posted by html404 on February 6, 2015
in All Natural Products, Beauty Products, Eco Friendly Products, Family Stuff, Gift Ideas, Girl Stuff, Personal Care Products, Products for Mom, Reviews, Uncategorized

If you are like us, you are trying to make wiser, healthy choices not only in your grocery store shopping but also beauty and personal care products. For several years we have been using natural alternatives from shampoos and toothpaste to even lip balm. There are some ingredients in commercial lip balms that you will want to avoid, such as: parabens and sulfates. That’s why we made the switch. We go through a lot of lip balm during the winter months so we were eager to try a new natural lip care called Mwah®.

Mwah offers an effective, fresh, high-quality, and healthy spin on lip care that’s still affordable for all young women. Mwah lip care products are natural, void of harmful chemicals and preservatives, never tested on animals, produced in a 100% solar powered factory in southern California and with a portion of all profits donated to the World Wildlife Fund. The collection includes three lip balm products: a slider tub, a stick and a gloss, all available in a variety of yummy flavors for girls looking for an irresistible pucker.

Mwah Review

Mwah has very nice packaging and included a sturdy, plastic drawstring bag.

Our nearly 18 year old daughter liked it and says this about Mwah, “A bit greasy but it smells good and keeps your lips soft. It does not really have a taste so that should prevent Jr. from eating it!”

Our oldest son, nearly 13, thought it was too oily and doesn’t smell nice, but he is a boy and this is a girl product! 😉

The rest of us thought it smelled good! The smells are very true to their flavors and are not fake.

The other girls liked the extra oiliness because it made them feel like they did not have to apply so much.

So the majority liked Mwah!

Mwah Product Line:
Lip Balm Slider Tub (SRP: $3.99). Flavors: Coconut Chick, Mango Tango, Sweet Tart
Lip Balm Stick (SRP: $1.99/single, $4.99/3-pack). Flavors: Creamsicle, Mango Madness, Strawberry Sweetheart
Lip Gloss (SRP: $2.99). Flavors: Berrylicious, Peachy Keen, Sugar Lips

You can check out the full line of products and get more info at http://www.perfectlypoutable.com.

Mwah is currently available at CVS/pharmacy, Ulta, HEB, Amazon.com and Meijer stores. Over the next few months, the products will be available nationwide at retailers including Target, Walmart, and Walgreens.

{No comments}

Pretty Farm Cats – Wordless Wednesday

Posted by html404 on February 4, 2015
in Animals, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Uncategorized, Wordless Wednesday

The only animals making the move with us are our three pretty farm cats and our loveable pooch! Too bad the rest of the animals were not small enough to fit into a vehicle with all of us!

These three below are looking sleepy, aren’t they?

{No comments}

Moving to Nova Scotia

Posted by html404 on February 2, 2015
in Animals, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Travel, Uncategorized

We are looking to move back to the Halifax region, but realistically could be anywhere in the center sections of the province.

Moving to Nova Scotia

For many years I dreamed of moving back to Nova Scotia, however, my husband always had a job here in Illinois and his mom and brother were here. When we moved here to the farm three years ago, I had pretty much settled into life in Illinois. Then another death in my family occurred. My husband’s second bout of unemployment in six years was encroaching upon a year and we threw the idea of moving back to Nova Scotia out there. To my surprise EVERYONE was on board…everyone but me. I was the least excited person in our family. ME!? My husband wondered why we had not thought of this back in 2013 when he lost his job and so did I. We got our passports, started researching moving back, farming, housing, etc. with the intention of visiting Nova Scotia in the fall of 2014.

When we visited Nova Scotia in November/December 2014 we checked out some farm properties and I worked on our children’s proof of Canadian Citizenship and getting other paper work started. Let’s just say it is not a simple or easy move! When I moved here to the United States, it was just little old me with a few pieces of luggage and boxes. Now we have a boat load of children AND stuff!

This beach is in the Pictou section in the map at the beginning of this post. And no, not all beaches in Nova Scotia are rocky!

We are in the process of selling our animals. It is rather bittersweet. We thought these were our “forever” animals. There is a lot of paper work and expense to transport animals across the border to Canada. We held out hope we might be able to take them with us, but finally decided it was just too much. We have a buyer for our cows, a farmer friend, thankfully. It is a relief to know they are going to a good home. We have a buyer for the 33 chickens we have left, they will be picked up soon. We have a buyer for our compact Kubota tractor. Our horse is returning to his owner, he was just with us on a free-lease (meaning we paid for nearly all his upkeep for the privilege of “owning” him). If we had of been moving within Illinois, his owner would have allowed us to keep him. He is nearly 31 years old and she couldn’t bear the thought of not seeing him again, plus a three day drive would have been rough on an older horse. Only the goats and sheep left to sell, plus a few odds and ends such as a goat milk stanchion, cow panels, t-posts (though we priced them in N.S. and are thinking we might take them with us!) and things like that.

It is a bit surreal and I do not think it has really sunk in yet. I have not even seen all there is to see in Chicago, let alone Illinois. You do not know how many “if onlys” we have been voicing! Guess we will still have lots to do when we come back for a visit.

Meanwhile we have sooooo much to do to get ready for a major move across country.

{No comments}

« Older Entries