review – Page 90 – Luv Saving Money

Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract

**I received a sample of the below mentioned products in exchange for a review. No other compensation has been received**

I’ll be honest, I’ve always been one to think, vanilla extract is vanilla extract. Whether it was store brand, big brand, or gourmet. I figured the gourmet brands might have a little more flavor but I was doing alright with my store brand vanilla extract. I mean, it made my cookies, it worked fine in a vanilla milkshake, whatever.

Then I had the chance to try Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract. Wow. When you open the brown glass bottle the scent hits you. I swear it’s like you can almost taste the vanilla when you smell it. There is a bit of an alcohol scent to it too. (It does contain 35% alcohol).

Nielsen-Massey uses hand selected beans from the Bourbon Island of Madagascar. They also use a cold extraction process the brings out all 300 flavor compounds in the vanilla bean.

I really wanted to get a sense of the taste difference in this vanilla. I thought vanilla milkshakes might be a good way to try. When I make my vanilla milkshakes I use vanilla ice cream and milk of course but I usually add about a teaspoon of of vanilla extract for more flavor. (I might have also picked that up from a certain restaurant I used to work at).

Seriously love the scent of this stuff. I have to take a couple whiffs of it every time I open it. Anywho, I added about a teaspoon per serving when I decided to make vanilla shakes for the boys and I.

Everyone agree, it made a good milkshake. We were all slurping up the last bit in the bottom of our cups.

Nielsen-Massey also has some recipes on their site for ideas to use their extracts. One recipe on the site to use the Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla is Coconut Vanilla ice cream which sounds amazing. Before we know it, holiday baking will be upon us. This would be a welcome addition to your baking cupboard.

You can find Nielsen-Massey on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NielsenMasseyVanillas

and on twitter: @NielsenMassey

GIVEAWAY

1 Luv Saving Money readers will win a

2 oz bottle of Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla

US only

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Farm Rich "Keep ’em Happy" After School with New Product Options

**I received a coupon for a free Farm Rich product in exchange for a post through Social Moms sponsored by Farm Rich. I will also be paid for pariticipation**

The kids are back in school. By the time my boys get home from school they’re “starving”. Yes they eat lunch in school but I know some of the lunch times are early like 11:15 early so they are hungry by the time they get home.

We have a routine, they know that homework comes first so they do that. They’re supposed to empty out their backpacks and give me any papers they brought home, then put their book bags away. They usually want a snack while they do their homework and I can’t blame them. It’s hard to concentrate if you’re hungry.
Farm Rich has two new snacks that you can heat up for your kids after school. The two newest flavors to hit the freezer at your grocery store are Toasted Ravioli and Crispy Dill Pickles. My boys love stuff like this and so do I because it’s a quick easy snack that’s filling.

I really wanted to try the Crispy Dill Pickles and stood at the freezer in Walmart debating on which one to try. I ended up choosing the Toasted Raviolis though because I was fairly certain everyone would like those.

Oh my these were so good. They were cheesy inside and kinda reminded me of mozzarella sticks. They were great with some sauce to dip on the side. My boys all enjoyed them too.

Yummy, now I can’t wait to try the Crispy Dill Pickles. So interested to see how the flavor turns out.

Farm Rich is new to Pinterest. Check out their “Keep ’em Happy” board for fun snacks ideas and more. You can also find Farm Rich on Instagram: http://instagram.com/farmrichsnacks
You can also check out Social Moms “Keep ‘Em Happy” Pinterest board: http://pinterest.com/socialmoms/keep-em-happy/

A Disposable Diaper That’s Better for the Earth AND Dependable? Absolutely

** I received the below mentioned product at no cost in order to complete an honest review. No other compensation has been received**

I’ve always used disposable diapers but there was a small part of me that felt guilty. Like maybe I should try cloth diapers. Cloth diapers just seemed like a lot of work to me (I know there are many that will disagree and that’s ok). They also just didn’t seem feasible for overnight trips and vacations. Bambo Nature diapers is a nice option for me.

Bambo Nature diapers are premium diapers. They won the top pick award for best green diapers. It was also the highest scoring diaper over all of the 20 diapers tested by BabyGearLabs. Bambo Nature diapers are free of ALL harmful chemicals. They are non-toxic and hypoallergenic.

When I took the diaper out of the bag it was super thin. I was concerned that it wouldn’t hold up. The first time I tried one I put it on my daughter to go to our local high school’s football game. I loved the way it fit her. It seemed comfortable for her. It really was absorbent and we experienced no leaks. Here’s my little happy model with the Bambo Nature diaper on. They were super helpful in helping me find the right size and I’m glad they talked to me to make sure I got the right size. In other brands of disposable diapers she was just barely fitting in a size 1 diaper and I was about to transition her to a size 2. After talking with them I realized the diapers sizes are not set up quite the same as other diaper brands. He recommended a 3. The size 3’s start at 13 lbs and go to 31 lbs. She just had her appt. last week and she was 13.9 lbs. I’m really glad I went with the size three, I think the 2’s would have barely fit. So that’s one thing to keep in mind when buying them, be sure to read the sizing description because they’re not the same as most diaper brands.

I really like these diapers. They go from newborn to size 6 which fits up to 66 lbs. I really like their new design too. They fit under clothes very well.

I wore them on her again today for our trip to Living Treasure Animal Park in Donegal, PA

Teehee, I love this picture. The little goat came over to the stroller and was curious. It started to nibble on the stroller a little bit.

You can find Bambo Nature diapers on Twitter: @BamboNature

and on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BamboNature

GIVEAWAY

1 US Luv Saving Money reader will win

a pack of Bambo Nature diapers in their choice of size.

US only

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I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

SpiderWeb Storage Solutions 3 X 17 X 18 Adjustable Shelf

**I received the below mentioned product at no cost in order to complete an honest review. No other compensation was received**

We have a small shed attached to our house. It can’t house much but we can keep our push mower, rakes, gardening equipment, etc. in it and it works fine for us. There are several plain wooden shelves in our shed but they kind of got cluttered. They were a mixture of gardening tools, outdoor tools, lawn care items, and so on. When I wanted to find my gardening tools I’d have to sift through bottles, and pots, and things and hope I didn’t jab myself with something.

SpiderWeb Storage Solutions have durable aluminum shelves that come in a range of sizes with adjustable shelves. These tough organizers are great for the garage, shed, basement, or wherever you might need a tough durable shelf.

The shelves come with nuts and bolts to easily adjust the top and bottom shelf to whatever distance apart you would like. There are convenient wholes in the top on both sides if you want to screw it into a wall. The handle makes it easy to carry. This shelf is actually a bit heavy for it’s size.

I decided to screw mine into the wall in my shed and use it for my gardening tools.

I know it looks like it’s on a door. Because it is, sort of. I’m guessing the shed was added onto the house at some point before we bought it. The door actually does not open and is part of the back wall of the shed. Anywho, it made a good spot for my SpiderWeb Storage shelf.

The second idea I had for the shelf was to collect my daughters baby food jars and use it to store jars full of things like screws, bolts, washers, etc. in the basement near my husband’s tool bench. Which I still might do, I haven’t completely decided yet.

It came with the screws for adjusting the shelves but the screws were not appropriate for hanging. So I found some wood screws in my hubby’s bench and used those to hang it with the pre-drilled holes at the top of the shelf. In a garage, this shelf could also sit on a counter or the floor and be quite sturdy.

You can actually buy additional shelves for each unit on their site: http://spiderwebstorage.com/

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free

Double Tap Jewelry on Instagram or Double Tap Sales Review

**I was initially asked to do a review in exchange for free jewelry and a payment but nothing was received for this post**

I was introduced to Double Tap Jewelry also known as Double Tap Sales through Sverve. I’ve had a lot of good experiences with the companies I met through Sverve. Unfortunately this is the first and only one I have not had a very good experience with.

I was engaged on the Double Tap Sales campaign a few months ago. Unfortunately I don’t know the exact date because it seems that communications that are several months old aren’t available on Sverve. I was trying to find the exact date. Anywho, the idea is that you Follow Double Tap Jewelry on Instagram. They post pictures of their jewelry they have for sale. If you like something you post “sold” with your email address and they paypal invoice you and then send you the jewelry you wanted once you pay. The other thing is you have sign up for a membership. You get one month free then you’re charged $1.99 each month. The jewelry is unique and I saw several pieces I like. I was given a credit to received some jewelry in order to do a review. I planned on talking about the process to order, the customer service, the shipping, and what the jewelry was actually like once received. The process to let them know what you wanted was pretty easy. They commented on their Instagram pic that they acknowledged what I wanted.

I’m angwith4 in the convo. There was also a bracelet I had wanted with my credit. I waited well over a month and never received the jewelry. I received an email from them asking me when I was going to do the review. I emailed back and told them i had not received the jewelry yet. I was waiting to received the jewelry so I could do a review on the process of ordering, quality of the jewelry, etc. I did not receive a reply and here at least another month later, still no jewelry. The only reason I even thought of it today was because I received an email stating my membership to dtap sales had been canceled which is fine by me. I can at least say they were kind enough to do that for me especially since I had trouble finding the site again.

Looking at Double Tap Jewelry instagram site there has not been any new jewelry listing since June 1, 2013. Since my membership was automatically canceled it makes me wonder if they are not shutting down perhaps. I don’t know that for sure but as a consumer, you have to question it.

It’s a shame because they had very fashionable and unique jewelry that’s was very reasonably priced but after all is said, I can’t recommend this to anyone.

I was supposed to get the jewelry and a payment for a review post but I have not received either one.