Red Gold

New Age Mama is hosting a great giveaway!

One of her readers is going to receive an amazing prize pack of Red Gold products. 

It includes:

• A can of whole and crushed Red Pack tomatoes 
• A can opener
• A pasta spoon 
• A pizza cutter
• Recipes 
• And more, all in a huge collectible tin. 

Homemade Bread

I like to make my own bread when I have the time. When I make it, I know what goes into it.

New Age Mama is hosting a giveaway for Manna Organics. They are giving away a sampler pack of 4 loaves.

I love that they post what's in the bread on their site!!!!!!!!!

Pretzel Crisps with Hummus Rocks!

I love pretzel crisps. They are so good with hummus on them! I buy them at Costco almost every time I go there. I don't go all that often. Our whole family gets into them.

Kostiuk Crew is hosting a giveaway for one winner to win a 71lb box of goodies from Pretzel Crips. This would be great for a party, get together, or art opening. My husband has 2 art openings coming up. I have to think of yummy things to make. They have great ideas to make things with their Pretzel Crips on their website!

Favorite Snacks

A couple of my favorite snacks are snap peas and pretzels dipped in humus!

New Age Mama is hosting a giveaway where one reader can win a variety pack of pretzels by: Vibrant Flavors!

What is your favorite snack?

I Love the Look of Clogs

 

I like being outdoors. There is something about the sunshine that just adds happiness into my life. It's also great getting exercise. The only problem is my annoying allergies. I love both of the clogs pictured! They can be washed much easier then other shoes.

You can win a pair of Jollys Garden Clogs at New Age Mama.

We Cook in the Majority of the Time!

We really do not go out to eat often. Many of the places are unhealthy.

My husband and I can cook, which is great. One thing that we do go through fast is silverware. Especially when my husband is home during the week. He watches two additional kiddo's.

My Organized Chaos is giving away a 20 piece set of silverware from Knork!

Handmade is Best

I love most all things handmade! I grew up with a father that is an artist, I went to two art schools and my husband is an artist. Needless to say, art is in my blood.

One thing that I'm super interested in is handmade interments!

New Age Mama is hosting a great giveaway for a $50 gift certificate to Novica. I love their drums! Novica has more then just interments. Their whole store is artist made things.

I Love Lemons!

We've been using a lot of lemons in our juicer. They work well with veggie and fruit juices!

New Age Mama is hosting a great giveaway! One winner will receive a gift bag from Lemon Ladies full of lemons! Yummy and good for you!

Tip: Lemons also work great for cleaning the kitchen. Just cut one in 1/2, take out the seeds, sprinkle baking soda on it, and scrub down your sink and counter. Follow up with a damp rag.

Apron

I love aprons. You can buy ones that are sexy, fun and sophisticated.

I saw this one tonight. I think it looks sophisticated.

Home Musings is giving this apron away tonight. It closes at midnight. Enter to win it here!

Be a Bigger Part of Something!

I think it's important for kids in middle school and high school to be a bigger part of something! This lessens the drop out rate.

My niece is in charge of Sparklers, which is a cheer leading squad for special needs children. She was all over the news last year for this. I'm so proud of her!

I think the biggest thing to build your self esteem is to help someone else. Work towards something. Even if it's small. Somehow it will get noticed!

Go Graham Go is giving away a gift basket for cheerleaders, which includes a cheer tote, water bottle and blanket. I want to win this for my niece Kailey!

Banana's About Banana's

At our house we love banana's! There is usually banana's at our house. I love to cook with them too.

Chiquita is giving away Chiquita Mom Kits to 5 lucky winners at The Crafty Nest. This giveaway is open worldwide.

KY Intimacy Experiment GIVEAWAY!

Travis and I have gone through many of the exercises in the book they provided for us. More then anything, the exercises have brought us more together. We communicate better. It gave us more ideas to spark our love life.

K-Y Brand is offering two of my readers the chance to win an “Intimacy Experiment Lab Kit.”

The kit comes with a book that helps guide you through the exercises, product samples, bubble bath, a small journal and more.

The only condition is that the two winners must have a blog and document their own 10 day experiment.

There is only one entry for this giveaway.

Make a comment and include your first name, your email address and your blog address.

This giveaway will end March 28. US only.

For more information about the Intimacy Experiment, make sure to check out K-Y Brand's Facebook Page, Couples Place.

I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this article are my own and not influenced in any way by anyone. If you have any questions about this review, please email me at: alissa4illustration AT hotmail DOT COM.

Day Ten: Putting it All Together

Day ten is the end of the K-Y Brand Intimacy Experiment. I started reflecting on not just what I've learned in the last ten days, but also our relationship from the start to what it is like now.

We look so young!

We now are a family of four.

Take a look back on all the exercises you've recorded through your journey.

Boosters to put into your schedule:

• Start the day with a 30 second hug to increase your cuddle hormone. 
• Incorporate a little more mystery into your love life as you get ready for work.
• Send your partner off with another hug, or some other kind of friendly touching.
• Check on your partner sometime during the day with a quick phone call, text or email.
• Embrace your partner with another hug when you see them at the end of the day.
• Have an evening date planned. You can include your favorite activity of the past 10 days. 
• Open your intimacy box, and have some one on one time.

 Write in you journal later:

• How the experiment overall went.
• What were the things you remembered the most? 
• What things did you forget?
• How has your relationship changed?
• What things do you want to make into a habit?
• What things do you see happening in the future?

For more information about the Intimacy Experiment, make sure to check out K-Y Brand's Facebook Page, Couples Place.

I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this article are my own and not influenced in any way by anyone. If you have any questions about this review, please email me at: alissa4illustration AT hotmail DOT COM. 

Day Nine: Dangerous Liaisons

Many times the beginning of a relationship is the most exciting. It's filled with newness and the unknown. After being with someone for a long time things get pretty uneventful. You really stop trying so hard. Risk and excitement is so important.


Do something a little risky. This could be as simple as going to an amusement park {which is totally not my thing}, dressing up out a character, hiking a trail that you've never gone on before or something else that you consider risky.

Exercise Day Fun:

• Get out of the house. 
• This is an exercise that requires time and in some cases money.
• Think outside the box to get a plan that will get your blood flowing and heart pumping.
• Try to think of something that will put your lives in each others hands.

Exercise Two Night Fun

• Keep the adrenaline pumping by doing something unpredictable. 
• This all depends on your level of comfort. 
• Try sexy hide-and-seek, or other fun games that get the blood flowing and heart pumping.
• Turn the lights low or off to put you in the mood.
• Use a blindfold in the bedroom.

 Discuss the Exercises:

• Were you scared or turned on by this exercise?
• How did the exercise make you feel?

For more information about the Intimacy Experiment, make sure to check out K-Y Brand's Facebook Page, Couples Place.

I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this article are my own and not influenced in any way by anyone. If you have any questions about this review, please email me at: alissa4illustration AT hotmail DOT COM.

Dat Eight: In Good Taste

A great way to someones heart is through their stomach. Cooking an aphrodisiac meal together is one sure way to bond! For dessert, enjoy each other!


There isn't a lot of proof that certain foods really work as aphrodisiacs; in many cases they do taste great and have good health benefits.


Whatever you eat overall affects your sexual health.


Recently a survey of out of 1,500 couples, 83% rated their relationship as great when they cooked with each other 3 or more times a week.

Cookie or baking together can bring people to the bedroom. Doing things with your partner outside the bedroom will bring you into the bedroom.

Exercise Day Fun:

• Cooking together can be fun even without sex.
• Consider your time together as foreplay.
• Find recipes that you can agree on. Ones that look good to both of you.
• Even the experience at the grocery store {picking out the food} can be great to do together.
• It's important to be able to have conversation. I think this is hard for us. We have different work schedules. We are often interrupted with a child talking. We need a baby sitter! ;)

What's on the Menu:

• Oyster Dish: They contain zinc, which helps with the male sex drive. Turkey and beans also contain zinc if you do not like oysters.
• Asparagus: This contains folates, which pushes histamine production. It increases the ability to reach an orgasm. 
• One Glass of Red Wine or Champagne: Known to lower your inhibitions. 
• A Small Piece of Dark Chocolate: Triggers phenylethylamine. This leads to excitement.

Our Version of a Steak House:

• My husband totally agrees with this chapter in KY Jelly's Intimacy Experiment!
• We are always experimenting with food. I think the above meal sounds great. I also feel that variety is so very important! Try different cultures of food!
• I came home one day to our living room totally set up like a steak house. The food was great, and it helped us all to be in a great mood! 
• You can match the music to the culture of food that you are eating.

Pillows were on the floor to kneel and eat.

 We had Kobe Japanese Steakhouse without the fire and less grease.

Exercise Two Night Fun

• Don't stop at chocolate for dessert. 
• Focus on foreplay before having sex. 
• Take your time for kissing and touching.
• Leave full of intercourse for later.
• Try bringing in flavors from the kitchen into the bedroom.
• Chocolate, whipped cream and strawberry are yummy flavors.

 Discuss the Exercises:

• Was it fun cooking with one another in the kitchen?

For more information about the Intimacy Experiment, make sure to check out K-Y Brand's Facebook Page, Couples Place.

I wrote this posting while participating in a blog campaign on behalf of K-Y® Brand and also received product samples to help facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this article are my own and not influenced in any way by anyone. If you have any questions about this review, please email me at: alissa4illustration AT hotmail DOT COM.