Is 2009 the year you resolve to go green?

Ecostore USA makes a wonderful line of chemical free, eco friendly household, bath and body, baby, and pet products that you can feel good about using around your house and around your children and pets.

I was sent several of their wonderful plant-based household cleaning products to try out, including the Citrus Spray Cleaner, the Dishwash Liquid, the Laundry Liquid, and the Toilet Bowl Cleaner. Because Ecostore USA products are free of nasty chemicals, they all have a pleasant scent. My favorite of the products I was sent to test out was the Citrus Spray Cleaner. I spray down our kitchen countertops daily and typically use a bleach-based cleaner so it was a nice alternative to use a product that was not only free of chemicals, but smelled nice, too.

The Ecostore line household cleaning products are as effective as the leading supermarket brands. Their bath and body and baby care products are gentle and they even offer a wonderful line of herbal fresh products for your pets. Let’s face it, buying green products can be expensive, so Ecostore has found a safe way to super-concentrate their cleaners so that a little goes a long way.

All Ecostore products are made from plant- and mineral-based ingredients and are free of toxic chemicals. The original Ecostore NZ was founded more than 15 years ago for consumers in New Zealand, Australia, and select locations in Asia and the UK.

Visit the Ecostore USA blog here.

Would you like to win a $25 gift certificate to Ecostore USA? Simply visit the Ecostore USA website and take a look at all of the wonderful products they offer and come back to this post and leave a comment about one product you’d like to try. A random winner will be chosen from all comments left by midnight Monday, January 12. You don’t need a blog or website to enter, but you do need to leave a legitimate e-mail address so I can contact you, should you win. For an extra entry, either link to this post or Tweet about it. Thanks and good luck!

Winter is here and that means prime time for cold and flu season. I don’t know about you, but if either of my girls start to complain about the sniffles or a sore throat I immediately go into “fight the funk” mode!

If you’ve ever wished that giving your kids a little immunity boost was as easy as giving them a fun and flavorful drink, you should definitely check out Emergen-Cflavored fizzy drink mixes. We were able to test out three flavors of Emergen-C Kidz, which is a complete multi-vitamin and multi-mineral supplement you add to water. With fun flavors like strawnana berry blast and orange pineapple explosion, and cherry yumberry, your kids won’t balk at drinking their magic “fizzy” drink to help boost their immune system. With 24 essential nutrients, Emergen-C Kidz  supplements also include choline to support healthy brain function and contain no artificial flavors.

Emergen-C is available in 19 varieties of drink mix nutritional supplements, two tablets, and four ready-to-drink beverages. Emergen-C can be found backstage at concerts for musical performers such as Miley Cyrus, Motley Crue, Steven Tyler and Aerosmoth, and Eric Clapton. Emergen-C is manufactured by Alacer Corp., the first corporate sponsor of “Operation Gratitude,” which serves to boost health, energy, and morale of troops overseas. More than 700,000 Emergen-C packets have been distributed to U.S. men and women in uniform. Emergen-C Pink was launched in 2007 as a partnership with Liv Tyler and her family; 50 percent of the profits go to The Keep A Breast Foundation, whose mission is to eradicate breast cancer by educating young people on methods of prevention and detection.

Emergen-C is sold in health food stores, supermarkets, drug stores, mass merchandisers, and club stores nationwide. For more information, visit their website at www.emergenc.com.

For anyone who has ever stood in the baggage claim area, searching high and low for their non-descript suitcase that blends in with all the others, Travel Chic has come to the rescue!

Travel Chic is a fun and functional way to “dress” your luggage, and offers a line of distinguishing luggage accessories, including chic luggage tags, handle wraps, decorative tassels, and keychains. Whether your style is conservative or fun, elegant or funky, Travel Chic has an item for your taste.

The Kids Collection at Travel Chic is a fun line of soft, colorful animals and monster handle wraps for luggage and backpacks that retail for $12.99. We got to review Snaggles and Slurp, and they are definitely a fun way to make  your child’s plain backpack, suitcase, or sports bag stand out from the crowd. In March we’re driving to beautiful Sandestin resort in Destin, Florida, for my oldest daughter’s spring break and in June we’re flying to St. Augustine, Florida, and our new suitcase pals will help us keep our luggage in sight. The summer vacation will be our 3-year-old’s first airplane trip, so anything we can do to make things run more smoothly will make the trip that more enjoyable.

For the adult traveler, Travel Chic offers a fun line of stylish, oversized luggage tags. My favorite is this pink luggage tag set, complete with fuzzy faux pink fur, which just screams Elle Woods from Legally Blonde, does it not?

All of the Travel Chic accessories retail for less than $30 so they make a nice, unique gift for the friend or family member who is a frequent traveler!

Do you have any family vacations, fun girls’ weekends, or other getaways planned for 2009?

I’m really not great at meal planning so I’ve vowed to start 2009 off by actually having a master plan for our dinners. I know… what a concept! Otherwise the hubby and I end up running to the grocery multiple times a week after work and that’s just no fun for anyone.

Last week Publix had whole chickens on sale for 99 cents a pound (which is a great deal). I picked out a 5-pounder and at checkout the chicken rang up for $1.59 a pound. Since I was basing our next few nights of dinner on this bird, I noticed the incorrect price. I had no idea that Publix has a checkout promise policy if your item rings up incorrectly at checkout so I got a 5-pound chicken for free!

I roasted it with some garlic and seasoning and butter for dinner that night with scalloped potatoes and spinach salad as sides and then pulled the remaining meat for this fabulous Chicken Tetrazzini with Marsala and Fresh Mushrooms recipe I saw in Southern Living.

So, the moral of this story is to keep an eye on the cash register when you shop for groceries. You just might get a free bird and start singing Lynyrd Skynyrd just for grins.

Here’s a link to a great post at Wallet Pop about what to do about inaccurate pricing.

Have you ever gotten an item at the grocery free because it rang up incorrectly?

Growing up my mother always made a traditional pot of black eyed peas for New Year’s Day for good luck, but I’ve honestly never been a big fan of traditional beans. Here’s a delicious dip recipe for a little variation on a tried and true tradition. And I’ve got another recipe posted over at my mommy blog, BlondeMomBlog.

Happy New Year! And If you have any black eyed peas recipes, please feel free to post them here in the comments.

Black Eyed Pea Dip (from the Southern Living message board)

1 can black eyed peas drained
1 can artichoke hearts drained and chopped
1/2 cup sauteed onion
1/2 cup mayo
1 Hidden Valley Party Dip dry mix
1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan

Mix together. Top with grated mozzarella (at least 1/2 cup)

325 for 20 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

Serve with tortilla chips.

Alas I am not one of those mothers who is great at traditions, but I’m slowly working on it.

When school started back in session I declared Friday nights Popcorn And Movie Night. We’ve always watched DVDs and we’ve always made popcorn, but somehow just making it official and giving it a title has made it extra special for our girls, ages 6 and 3.

For about eight weeks I checked DVDs out at our local library and I used Red Box twice, using free rental codes. I think I rented every Disney and Barbie movie available. I love that I can request movies online through our library system’s website and that I am then notified when they are at our local branch for pick up.

The last few weeks of school before the holiday break, though, I was especially busy at work and at home and have just gone to our local Hollywood Video store on Friday after school with my oldest daughter because our library is closed on Fridays. Renting two movies at Hollywood Video is $7.18! That may not sound like a lot of money, but when I realized how much I’d been saving by using the local library and Red Box, it made me think about how much $7 plus a week on movie rentals adds up!

Does your family do a movie night? How do you save on family movie rentals? Do you subscribe to a service like Netflix? Do you ever swap out movies with friends or family or use the local library?

Once we had children we started the tradition of staying home Christmas day so our girls could play with their new toys from Santa and we could just relax and enjoy some family time.

My family is coming over tomorrow for a casual lunch and I thought I’d share a few recipes I’m considering. I’m definitely making the dip and the ham sandwiches. I’m running out of time, so I may buy a store bought dessert (thank God for Publix), but here are a few good recipes.

Feta Artichoke Dip

I’ve been making this for years and cut it out of the coupon section of the Sunday Tennessean years ago.

Prep: 10 minutes

Bake: 25 minutes

1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 pkg. (8 oz.) Feta Cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 cup regular or light mayonnaise

1 clove garlic, minced

1 jar (2 oz.) diced pimientos, drained (optional)

Mix all ingredients. Spoon into a 9-inch plate or 3-cup shallow baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned.

Serve with assorted crackers, veggies, or pita triangles. Makes 2 cups.

Ham Delights

I’ve never made this recipe, but I have two packages of Sister Schubert’s yeast rolls in the freezer just waiting to be used!

Ham Delights

* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 2 Tablespoons prepared mustard
* 1/2teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
* 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
* 3 green onions, chopped
* 1 pound Honey ham, chopped
* 6 ounces grated Swiss cheese
* 4 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
* 6 ounces grated sharp Cheddar cheese
* 2 pans thawed Parkerhouse Rolls

Combine first 5 ingredients. Stir in ham and cheeses. Place 1 teaspoon filling in center of each roll. Place back in pan. Cover until ready to eat. Cover rolls with aluminum foil, and heat at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

Yield: two to three dozen rolls

Snowball Cake

Our good friend Brad, who was best man in our wedding, is from Illinois. His mother made this 12 years ago when we visited and it is delicious!

1 (3-ounce) package lemon flavored gelatin

1/2 cup granulated sugar, optional

1 cup boiling water

1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple in juice

orange juice or water, if needed

1 (8 ounce) container lemon-flavored yogurt

1 (12 ounce) container frozen nondairy whipped topping, thawed, divided

1 medium angel food cake (purchased or homemade), torn into pieces

Flaked coconut or colored decorating sugar, optional

Stir gelatin and sugar into boiling water until dissolved. Drain pineapple, reserving juice, stir 3/4 cup drained pineapple juice into gelatin mixture. (If you don’t have enough pineapple juice, add orange juice or water to make 3/4 cup.) Refrigerate mixture about 1 hour or until partly set.

With electric mixer on high speed, beat thickened gelatin about 2 minhutes. Mix pineapple into whipped gelatin mixture. Stir in yogurt and 2 cups nondairy whipped topping.

Line a 10-cup bowl with plastic wrap. Fill bowl with alternating layers of cake and whipped mixture. Cover; refrigerate overnight.

The next day, invert bowl onto cake plate. Remove plastic wrap. Frost with remaining whipped topping. Sprinkle with coconut or decorating sugar. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Cranberry Tea

My mother has made this for years and it is delicious and festive.

1 qt. cranberry juice

6 cups water

3 tsp. lemon juice.

Boil together 2 cups of the 6 ups of water with 1 cup  sugar.

Add 3 cinnamon sticks and 12 cloves. Mix and add a touch of red food coloring. Remove cinnamon and cloves before serving. Pour into coffee pot to serve. My mother uses her “retro” (I think it’s from the 1960s) coffee pot.

Merry Christmas everyone!

This weekend, the Williams-Sonoma, Inc. family of brands is offering limited-time savings at its retail stores during its 4-day Williams-Sonoma Friends and Family Event. All offers, with the exception of PBteen, are good for instore purchases only.  My favorite deal is the free shipping at PBteen. I love to shop online and free shipping woos me every time.

Williams-Sonoma: Friends and Family Event

Tomorrow through Wednesday, December 24, Williams-Sonoma is having a Friends and Family Event at retail stores only.  Take 20% off all merchandise in the store.  See stores for details and visit www.williams-sonoma.com to find a location near you.

Pottery Barn: Spend $100 and get $20 back

Today through Sunday, December 21 spend $100 at a Pottery Barn store and get a $20 gift card that can be used from 12/26/2008 – 01/31/2009.  See store for details and visit www.potterybarn.com to find a location near you.

Pottery Barn Kids: Spend $100, get a $20 coupon

Now through December 21, for every $100 you spend on in-store merchandise, you will be entitled to a coupon for $20 that is valid for a future purchase at any Pottery Barn Kids store between December 26, 2008 and January 31, 2009.  See store for details and visit www.potterybarnkids.com to find a location near you.

PBteen: Free shipping online

Today through Monday, December 22 PBteen will offer free shipping on an expanded assortment of in stock items only.  Normal surcharges will apply.  Visit www.pbteen.com for details.

West Elm: Additional savings in store
Today through Wednesday, December 24 get an additional 20% off on ALL SALE items. Visit www.westelm.com to find a location near you.

Williams-Sonoma Home: Save on holiday accessories

Get up to 20% off on select categories including apothecary and holiday accessories at Williams-Sonoma Home retail stores.   Visit www.wshome.com to find a location near you.

I’ve always associated VistaPrint with great looking, and affordable, business cards and have ordered freelance and blog business cards from them in the past. If you are looking for unique, personalized gift ideas, however, VistaPrint is a great source for everything from custom photo desk calendars to personalized note cards.

I recently ordered several Christmas gifts from VistaPrint as well as beautiful winter snowflake theme return address labels. For my daughter’s first grade teacher I ordered personalized sticky notes and a personalized ink pen for her desk. For my dad and inlaws I ordered personalized calendars. I ordered a traditional wall calendar for my inlaws and the more compact desk calendar for my dad, which turned out to be my favorite of the two designs as it is printed on higher quality paper stock. You can even add custom text to the calendars offered on VistaPrint, which is great for adding family birthdays and other important dates. For my 3 and 6-year-old daughters I ordered pretty unicorn theme (very girly!) note cards to add to their Christmas stockings. I’ve been working with my oldest daughter, especially, on writing thank you notes. Lastly, I ordered a set of the large magnets for the 2009 calendar year featuring our Christmas card photo. I thought these would be great to give to family.

The best part about VistaPrint is all of their items are reasonably priced and they ship quickly.

My 3-year-old is obsessed with my pink digital camera, or really any camera. It’s just a bonus that mama’s happens to be pink. While I’m all for her honing her photography skills, I’m not that keen on her slinging around expensive “toys.” I mean it’s all fun and games until someone breaks a $200 camera.

Parents magazine has an amazing line up of toys and their latest addition to hit shelves is a cute toy camera designed for ages 12 months and up. The Parents Look-at-Me Camera is sleek and designed to look just like mom and dad’s and makes realistic shutter sounds with the push of a button. The camera is just the right size for small hands and the shutter button even lights up the flash. A second button plays phrases and a third button plays fun disco music that is, thankfully, not too obnoxious. The Parents Look-at-Me Camera retails for $15 and it would make a fun present for your future award winning photographer this holiday season. All kids, especially preschoolers, love to play with toys that look just like mom and dad’s gadgets. My 3-year-old was a little too old for the camera, but still enjoyed playing with it. We’re passing it on to a friend with a one-year-old and I am sure she will love it.

You can find the Parents line of toys (which are all 100% phthalate free) at Target stores nationwide for $9.99.

Thanks to Team Mom for the fun review opportunity!

The winner of the $25 gift certificate to Creative Wanderings is Tammy who commented, The Goat’s Milk Body Glaze sounds interesting.” Thanks to everyone who entered! Don’t forget about the 15% reader discount.

Feeling stressed? Do you fantasize about locking yourself in the bathroom and taking the world’s longest bath?

Creative Wanderings is a wonderful online store out of Canada featuring delightful handmade soaps, body butters, lotions for indulging the senses run by a mom of two girls. Their signature product is the body buttah line, which will leave even the most dry skin baby smooth and soft. Most of the products are made with all natural ingredients and the finest of high quality oils and essential oils. Creative Wanderings also features a fun assortment of products for kids, from adorable rubber ducky soaps to cupcake bath bombs to popsicle soaps. Guys, do not feel left out. Creative Wanderings carries a wonderful shaving soap bar and the “man bar,” which is handmade with Alexander Keiths dark red beer.

Would you like to win a $25 gift certificate to Creative Wanderings so you can treat yourself to some wonderful handmade body and bath goodies after the holidays? Simply visit the Creative Wanderings website and take a look around at all their wonderful products. Come back to this post and leave a comment about your favorite. A winner will be chosen at random from all eligible comments left by midnight Sunday, December 21.

Savvy Housewife readers also receive 15% off all orders from Creative Wanderings using code SavvyMom now through December 31.

When I was little I had a gorgeous dollhouse my mother found at an antique store in downtown Nashville. I played with it constantly and I still have the furniture sets stored in our attic. The dollhouse, unfortunately, suffered from moisture damage after being stored in a basement and we were not able to restore it.

Every little girl dreams of having a dollhouse and I was very fortunate to preview the Raleigh Dollhouse from Pottery Barn Kids just in time for Christmas. This is a gorgeous toy that will definitely be one to pass on to grandchildren! The best part? It ships FULLY ASSEMBLED. No hacking through twist ties and hunting down microscopic screws to the point where you are drinking straight from the bottle Christmas Eve. Pottery Barn has made it easy peasy lemon squeezy, as my 6-year-old would say.

Here’s the information from the Pottery Barn Kids website:

Raleigh Dollhouse, $199

Built to last for years of play, this grand dollhouse estate gives children and their dolls plenty of room to play and explore. The large manor house has four stories of play space, open on three sides so it’s easy to gather around and join the fun. Built of birch and engineered wood with the hallmarks of traditional Southern architecture, such as spindled supports and window shutters. Item ships as one piece. No assembly required.

We also received two Palace Park Dolls. These are well-made, soft dolls inspired by vintage paper dolls that are tres chic! They retail for $29.

Pottery Barn Kids has also collaborated with the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® Thanks and Giving® campaign to create Oatmeal the Bear™. For every bear sold, Pottery Barn Kids will donate $10 to St. Jude to support research and treatment for pediatric cancer and other catastrophic childhood diseases. Oatmeal retails for $20.

Here is some helpful information about items with free shipping and shipping cut-off dates for the holidays.

(Read on …)