Filippo Berio Olive Oil: First Impressions

I'm usually not too picky when it comes to olive oil. I usually buy whatever is on sale or whatever brand my husband wants. We've used Pompeian, Carapelli, Filippo Berio and probably others that I can't remember off the top of my head.  When I got the chance to be part of a bzzagent campaign for Filippo Berio Extra Virgin Olive Oil, I immediately accepted the invitation.  We do go through the olive oil at our house, so why not grab a free bottle, right?

The kit I received was filled with all the goodies you see in the picture below. The butter to olive oil exchange chart is particularly helpful and now sits on my refrigerator.

I'm looking forward to trying the Filippo Berio Extra Virgin Olive Oil and I'll be posting my thoughts here soon!

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a bottle of Filippo Berio Olive Oil free via BzzAgent. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

The Exceptional Life by Stephen Arterburn

What is an exceptional life? Is it amassing tremendous wealth? Is it a perpetual state of happiness? Is it even possible? In The Exceptional Life by Stephen Arterburn, an exceptional life is essentially experiencing God's best for one's life. An exceptional life is filled with hope, love, trust, forgiveness, patience, power, connection and freedom.

Arterburn addresses eight difficult issues keep can keep a person from leading an exceptional life: guilt/shame, resentment, fear, anger, instant gratification, learned helplessness, isolation and addiction. Each chapter is divided into three parts that address what the issue is, how it affects a person and how to break free from the power of it.

Because The Exceptional Life by Stephen Arterburn addresses several heavy issues, I really appreciated the bits of humor that were incorporated throughout the book. Just the introduction had me laughing and the humor made the topics less intimidating. Reading the book was like sitting down with a therapist and getting some honest, non-biased advice about life. I feel like Arterburn's descriptions and solutions regarding each issue were right on target. Although I have not personally experienced all of the issues addressed in the book, I found that I could always see some way to apply what he was saying to my life. I liked that, when applicable, he used Scripture to back up his points.

I would recommend to any Christian who is looking to experience the best life that God intends for him or her.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

In Too Deep by Mary Connealy

After the death of her abusive and wicked husband, Audra Gilliland is determined to become independent and assertive.  She agrees to a marriage of convenience with Ethan Kincaid as a way to protect herself, her two daughters, and to get out of her new married step-daughter's home.  Audra desperately wants to be able to stand up for herself. After all, she does not care what her husband thinks about it. Ethan does not have high hopes for the marriage other than to have a wife who can cook, clean and live amicably with him.  Surprisingly to both Ethan and Audra, affection begins to grow quickly. However, before they can see what this fondness will lead to, they must each deal with lingering remnants of their past lives.

In Too Deep by Mary Connealy is the second book of the Kincaid Brides series. I haven't read the first one, but this one gave enough background information that I easily understood what was going on after a few chapters.  To be honest, I found the back story and ongoing drama caused by Audra's previous husband (a situation presumably addressed in the first book and in the forthcoming third book) more interesting than the love story between Ethan and Audra.  Audra's character was well-developed and authentic. However, Ethan's character was a little flat and somewhat unbelievable to me.  I will not mention the exact details because that would lead to spoilers, but most of the time he is presented as reasonably intelligent and talented and then other times he is unbelieveably naive.  I know that people and characters are multi-faceted, but the naivety was not cohesive with the rest of his character.

This is one of those books that I recommend renting from the library before buying.  Some readers will probably love it, but I don't see myself ever reading it again.

Click here to read an excerpt from In Too Deep by Mary Connealy.



Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers as part of their blogger review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Science Diet Ideal Balance Cat Food: Product Review

I love my cats. For many years I fed them the cheaper brands of cat food. It was not until I had a cat diagnosed with heart disease that I found out more information about feline nutrition. Basically, protein is very important (it's what they would be eating if they were in the wild) and grains can be hard for them to digest. Since that time, I've tried to do better in making sure they get the proper nutrition to keep them as healthy as possible.

Science Diet has a new line of cat food available called Ideal Balance. It features fresh chicken as the first ingredient, fruits and veggies as secondary ingredients and is free of corn, artificial flavors and preservatives. It is conveniently available in the Kitten, Adult and Mature Adult varieties.

When I gave my cats this dry food, they enthusiastically ate it. This is actually nothing new. They do that with all cat food. But, I was pleasantly surprised to find that as the days went by and they continued eating the food, there was less throwing up from one of our cats who apparently has a sensitive stomach. I have no doubt the switching of brands is what caused her throwing up to lessen. Although Science Diet does cost more than other brands you can find in the big box stores, the higher price is worth it to be able to give my cats good nutrition.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a bag of Science Diet Ideal Balance Cat Food free via BzzAgent. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Reminder: Free Bag of Science Diet Ideal Balance Cat Food!

Just a small reminder about the great offer that Science Diet has going right now.  You can visit their website to compare your current dog or cat food with their brand and get a bag of food free by signing up for a rebate!

Although I am still awaiting my rebate, I found that the rebate form simple to print and easy to fill out.  I recommend to anyone looking to switching pet food brands or anyone who just likes saving money!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a bag of Science Diet Ideal Balance Cat Food free via BzzAgent. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition: First Impressions

I just got my full size samples of the Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Shampoo and Conditioner for Dry, Damaged Hair in the mail recently.  I've used Garnier Fructis products in the past, but I was neither impressed nor disappointed. They were just an okay brand to me.  However, I've heard really good things about this line from Garnier Fructis, so I am definitely open to trying it.

My first impression of this particular shampoo and conditioner is pretty good. The bottling is clean, simple and attractive. The shampoo and conditioner have different smells, but both smell good with the conditioner having a lighter scent than the shampoo.

From the information I received, Garnier Fructis is going green and that's not just the color of their bottles.  These bottles contain PET, the most widely recycled plastic, and are composed of 30% recycled plastic.  Add in the fact that they are 10% lighter and Garnier Fructis estimates that over 125 tons of plastic are saved annually.  Nice.

Garnier Fructis makes some strong claims about what this shampoo and conditioner combination can do for my hair:

• Nourish the hair to the core so that it shines.
• Formulated with three weightless nutritive fruit oils (olive, avocado and shea)
• Packed with ultra-rich and nourishing conditions that rinse clean. 

I don't like to think of my hair as dry and damaged, but it is.  It is naturally curly, coarse and quite dry.  I am looking forward to seeing how this product works and will update once I've tried it a couple of times!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received  Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Shampoo and Conditioner free via BzzAgent. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."