Yoplait Fiber One Yogurt Review & $50 Safeway Gift Card Giveaway

One of my girls' and my favorite snacks to have around the house is yogurt. Yesterday, I had a chance to pick up Yoplait Fiber One yogurt(vanilla and strawberry) at my local Safeway store. The vanilla was delicious and tasted almost like a custard. I couldn't tell it was fat free! The strawberry Yoplait Fiber One yogurt is made with real strawberries which is a plus, because my girls HAVE to have yogurt with real fruit. I loved that it was a smaller serving, 4oz versus 6oz, than the standard yogurt containers, because I never seem to finish the larger ones. It's also just the right size to throw into the kids' lunches. :0)

Yoplait Fiber One Nonfat Yogurt is only 50 calories per serving with 5 grams of fiber (that's 20% of the recommended daily allowance!) with added vitamins A & D. With 0 grams of fat you can enjoy this tasty treat without the guilt. It's Hungry Girl approved! Fiber One is available in a variety of flavors including, Strawberry, Peach, Vanilla and Key Lime Pie (see what Hungry Girl thinks about the new yogurt here).

Right now you can get two 4-pack Fiber One Yogurt at Safeway for $4.00 until February 9th. If you check out the Fiber One website, you can find a 75 cent off coupon to download and print. Sweet!

How about something more sweet than that? It's time for a giveaway. Here's your chance to win a $50 Safeway giftcard. Entering is simple: Comment and tell me what flavor of Yoplait Fiber One Yogurt would you like to try. Giveaway ends midnight February 11th. Winner will be random number generated and notified by email. Make sure you include your email in your comment.

Safeway and Fiber One provided me with VIP coupon for free product to sample, information, gift card, and an additional gift card for the giveaway through MyBlogSparkTM.

Fatherhood Friday

Wow, it's been awhile since I did a Fatherhood Friday. I figured I would get one in today. Don't forget to check out all the other great Fatherhood Friday posts from other moms and dads at Dad Blogs by clicking the badge here:

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As usual, I'm one of the oldest people(if not THE oldest) in my classes. I'm totally cool with that. Until....I hear stupid conversations or have to question how men/ women think. I know you all are thinking, what in the HELL does this have to do with Fatherhood Friday. I'll get to that. I promise.

In history class I talk with only two people in a classroom of about 90 students. These two people are cool: One is twenty, the other almost thirty. It's biology that I start to wish that there were more older people. The likelihood of that ever happening is not very likely considering it's a general ed course.

Anyways, on Tuesday, one of the people from my lab group(there are six of us) asked another if she got her car. Apparently, she was supposed to have gotten it last week. Turns out that she had wrecked her car and was waiting on the insurance money to get it, but her car had all these upgrades the insurance didn't account for (do they ever?). She's saying how her mom is waiting to just get their cars together: Hers, a Volvo, her mom's, a Mercedes (or was it a BMW not that makes a difference). Of course the young girls were shocked by the types of cars and probably wished they were her. I don't know. Then she talked about how she and her mom share clothes, because they are the same size (that's annoying enough right there). Her mom cares about what types of clothes she wears, car she drives, etc., and the girl said that apparently that's where she got her desire for the same. Of course I had to put my two cents in ever so gently.

I mentioned that even when I was young I never had the desire for name brand stuff, fancy car, etc. Even now I am still like that. I told the group that my dream car was a minivan, at which they laughed, and that I got. I said that as long as I'm not cramped and it gets me where I want to go, it's all good. One girl said she would just be glad to have a car.

So today in lab she's talking to the other girl that sits across from her in our group. They get onto the subject of tires. She states that her mom gets her tires changed every six months. I think I said something about that being a waste of money. She said something to the affect about it having special tread. I immediately thought, 'Your mom has been fed some total bullshit, and she's eating it all up with a spoon.'

I'm guessing that the father is not around, because she never mentions him. If he is, why isn't he putting a stop to this madness? It's no secret that mechanics, or whatever profession most women don't know about, can totally tell women that this or that needs to be fixed, and they're going to believe it because we don't know the difference. There are some women that that doesn't happen to, but for the majority we know this is true.

This is one area that I think guys are better at handling. I'm grateful that my husband shares his knowledge about the do's/don'ts of car care and maintenance. I'm also grateful to my dad sharing his knowledge as well even though it's somewhat limited. While it's a fact that I can't change my own tires (which I have never tried, so who knows?), change the oil, etc., I feel comforted by the fact that I know how to check fluid levels, fill them if I have to, I can tell a spark plug from a carburetor, and a few other things. I never would have known how to do these things if not for dads and husbands.

There's Another Teenager in the House: Mini-Me

It's hard to believe that when I started this blog almost three years ago that Mini-Me was only 10 years old. Despite the fact that she has always been a little more serious than most kids her age, she was still a little girl to me. Then one day I noticed she wasn't anymore. All of a sudden she was taller than me. How did that happen?! I'm glad that it did though. I wanted to be taller in my youth, but of course I got the short end of the stick. LOL

This past year has been one of struggles for Mini-Me. Through it all she is still the bright, funny, loving, and crazy girl she's always been even on days when it didn't seem like it. Today she is thirteen...an official teenager. My wish for her is to keep on being the bright, funny, loving, and crazy girl she's always been. I want her to know that the teens are going to be a bit hard, but it's also a time of learning to never lose sight of who she is. It's OK to be different (as she has always been and which I'm grateful for).

Mini-Me,

I love your uniqueness. I love you for being you. I am so very lucky to have you as my daughter. Know that no matter what you go through in life, I will ALWAYS be here for you. You will always be my baby, my boo girl. Happy Birthday!

I love you,

Mom xoxo

In a rare appearance here on my blog, I present....Mini-Me



(this photo has been edited, she's not this pale lol)

Thematic Photographic #1 (theme #85: hungry)

I thought I'd start back on something that I loved but hadn't done in awhile: Thematic Photographic. Every week, Carmi from Written Inc., posts a theme. This week's theme is "I'm Hungry". Since this is a new year, and I've just started back on the thematic photographic, I'll be starting at #1 though it's #85 in the themes :0).

My photo was from my trip to Seattle, Washington. We also went to Victoria, B.C. We had lunch at a pub there called The Sticky Wicket.

I loved it, and the food was good. Here's what we had:



Nothing like fish & chips done right. :0) I was also browsing through The Buried Life's videos, and they gave a shout out to The Sticky Wicket as a sponsor in the first road trip. In case you haven't heard of The Buried Life , it's a show on MTV about four friends who have made a 'bucket list' of sorts. They have crossed a few things off of their list, but still have more left to do. They also help others cross something off their list. I missed the premiere (Monday @ 10PM), but you can find their videos on youtube.

In the City

Had my oldest and my mom here for a few days. They arrived on Christmas then flew back to Vegas along with my girls who were heading there to see their dad. My son, Brenden, wanted to visit San Francisco and had Googled places he wanted to check out while he was here: Amoeba Records and City Lights Books. He also wanted to head down to the wharf with dreams of being a dock worker and maybe never going back to Vegas. Alas, his life would not change that dramatically. I'm sure he blames me for that since I was ready to leave the city and head back home. If we're being real, we would have head down to the pier and saw all the crap that most tourists do. Hardly think you can find dock work there. haha Maybe next time. I know that he would have preferred to see the 'nightlife', but 'nightlife' can't be fun with your forty-three year old mother. Perhaps one day he'll get up here with some friends. If they're smart about it, they could save up, fly or drive out here, and stay somewhere in the city with close access to everything.

Our first stop in San Francisco was Amoeba Records on Haight Street. Brenden was visiting his girlfriend at the time, N., when he went to the one in LA. He said she was getting a little perturbed with him because he was taking too long in the record store. If anyone knows my son, he's into music, books, and films. I'm not talking about mainstream stuff. It's a combination of independent, classic, basically eclectic stuff. He found some vinyl and cds at really good prices. I can't remember the titles, but if he tells me, I'll list them here. He's a total snob when it comes to music, books, and films. Just check out this post here.

Second stop was Buffalo Exchange also on Haight. He had bought a classic Penguin jacket along with a couple other items. I'm a little sad thinking about this now, because I asked him if he was going to check his luggage in on Southwest. He decided to and now they've lost it. Some of those new items were in it along with his favorite clothes and jackets given to him by his roommate...not to mention the suitcase belonged to his other roommate. :0/ I think when I pick up my girls on Monday from the airport, I'm going to check the Southwest luggage area. Who knows? I might find it. I'm gonna cross my fingers.

Before we headed to our third stop, Stinky decided to take us to Lombard Street: The crookedest street in America. Just to get to the top of where it starts winding was ridiculously busy. It's a very touristy thing to do, I guess. I didn't take photos of it. I do have a video. Maybe if I get around to it, I may post it. I'm just deciding if I want anyone to hear the conversation in the video. It's kinda whacked. LOL The crooked section of Lombard is basically useless. You don't really need to use it to get anywhere. Well, at least I think it's useless. haha

Our last stop in the city was City Lights Books on Columbus Avenue and Broadway in the North Beach area. This book store had three levels. Some of the books in there I had never seen or heard of before. I know that Brenden picked up a Jim Carroll book and something else. I'll have to list those if I find out the titles, too, along with the music.

Stinky had asked who wanted to go to the pier, and I vetoed it along with my girls. I think we were just tired. My son and Showboat wanted to go, but I have the power {insert evil laugh here}. Normally, I wouldn't mind going to the pier, but I wasn't feeling too well. I was still somewhat sick as I had gotten a cold/flu just a few days before my son and mom got here.

Anyways, I wish we could have spent more time on Haight Street, because there were many cool shops I would have liked to check out. If I have my son out here again, we'll definitely have to go back to the city and pick up where we left off: The pier and back to Haight.

Here's a little video I made of the limited pics I took. In this video is the Bay Bridge, the city from the bridge, Amoeba, my son paying for his music, Brenden in the poetry section of City Lights, and other photos. It's set to the outro of Ottoman by Vampire Weekend. I do not own the song. There is no copyright infringement intended.

A New Year...No New Expectations

UPDATE:  Since Fatherhood Friday over at Dad Blogs seems to be about the New Year, I'm just going to use this post.  Yes, I'm cheating. LOL  Make sure to visit other Fatherhood Fridays by clicking the badge.

Well here we are at the start of new year. I tried my damnedest to stick to my quasi-resolutions or what I called 'lifestyle changes'. That didn't go so well. I tried to be organized: FAIL. Tried to not half-ass stuff: FAIL. Okay,so maybe I got through school. Guess that's not a total fail, BUT I did kind of half-assed my way through. I KNOW I could have gotten an A in History had I tried harder. I did get an A in Spanish, but there were some homework assignments I just said 'F it' to. I always seem to have a habit of never starting what I finish except when it comes to working. When I had a job, I did what I needed to do and sometimes beyond what is expected of me. But my personal life? Not so much. I am always wanting so much, but I never really put the effort in to get what I want...if that makes sense. I really wanted to lose more weight in 2009, but I never did. I gained back two pounds of the 15 I lost the previous year. I know that it's because I didn't exercise. I ate a lot of crap I shouldn't have. You know, all the things that usually contribute to not losing weight. Yeah, I half-assed it. So this year I'm going to do something different. I'm not going to make any declaration of 'lifestyle changes' or resolutions.

I've decided that I'm just going to do what I can do to the best of my ability. I find when I expect too much out of myself, I usually end up disappointed. You know that saying, "Don't have high expectations in people, because you'll just be disappointed"? Guess it can apply to the self, too. I do have some things I'd like to accomplish within the next year. I'm just going to have to set up 'baby' goals. My first: an A in History. I'm taking the second half with the instructor I really enjoy. I want an A in Biology, too, so a 4.0 semester average is not reaching too far.

So what about you all? Any expectations, dreams, desires for 2010?

HAPPY NEW YEAR! WISHING YOU LOTS OF LOVE, HAPPINESS, AND DREAMS COMING TRUE. XO

O' Xmas Tree

I got a chance to finally make a video of the Christmas tree. I usually do just a post with pics, but this also gave me a chance to review muvee Reveal movie maker. I already had muvee autoProducer 6.0, but it was a limited version as to some of the features I could use. muvee Reveal comes with ten different styles for your movie with easy editing options to add titles and credits. It's a handy feature for someone like me who is basically a newbie at movie making.  

muvee Reveal version 8 is the next generation of automatic video editing software from muvee. With added features including social network sharing, music trimming, including your own logo, and rolling credits, muvee Reveal version 8 is the ultimate muvee experience.
muvee’s award-winning technology analyzes your photos, video, the style you choose and your music . With patented face and motion detection technology, muvee Reveal version 8 then automatically selects the best scenes and syncs everything to the beat of your music creating a unique and personal home movie you can share.
Tell your story the way you want to through advanced personalization features including new styles, captions, voiceover and music trimming. Upload to Youtube, Facebook or burn to DVD – the sharing possibilities are endless. Home movie making has never been so easy.
Make Home Movies in 3 Easy Steps (Even Grandma Could Do It!)
1. Add your photos and video Integrated import options include direct device capture (camcorders, mobile phones, digital cameras)
2. Choose your style Each of our styles has unique effects, animations, and transitions to complete your home movie. Go from high-energy & fast-paced to sentimental & sweet.
3. Add your music Use your favorite music to make your muvees more personal
Voila! Just press Play!

I started by choosing a color for my title background, selecting the font I wanted to use, and font color. I added pics from my computer which is done easily either by drag and drop or simply clicking the add button on the muvee Reveal option. I then selected a short Christmas song and dragged it from my itunes file into the music box. Voila! It was added just like that. I then chose a 'style'. The style I chose was 'reflections' and added the stars. There were two other shapes to choose from. I added the end credits. It was ready to save.  So here it is...the movie with my tree and some of our 'special' decorations.

I think I'm going to have to try muvee Reveal on some family photos so I can try the 'magic spot' option. With that option you can pan or zoom in to the subject's smile to get that 'magic spot' and have a more professional looking movie.

You can easily share this on YouTube, Facebook, etc.  That came in handy for me!  I had to use YouTube, because I think someone ate the 'film strip icon' at Blogger. haha

First ornament shown is a Miami Dolphins Santa and Boy.  This is an ornament that my husband has had for awhile.  If I had my druthers, nothing sports related would be on the tree. LOL

The second shown is a tree that was made by Miss La-Di-Da-Di maybe a couple of years ago.  As you can see, the teacher laminated it, but you can see who cut the laminate to its shape. haha  On the back is a little photo of her and a small poem that was used on all the trees.  I'll have to tell you what it says later.  I tried to take a photo, but it didn't come out too well.

Third ornament is Star Trek #1.  You're supposed to be able to plug it into a string of lights or remove one of the lights from the tree, but it doesn't work on the tree.  Obviously this ornament does not belong to me. :0p

Ornament Four-A gold tree ornament given to us by my MIL on our third Christmas.  We had another little ornament she gave us the second, but it broke :0(

Fifth Ornament-One of two craptastic ornaments my girls made me when they were five and three.  My ex and I had just separated six months earlier.  I can't remember who made which one.

Sixth Ornament-Taz, one of my husband's as well.  I don't know how long he's had it.

Seventh Ornament-This was given to me on my last day of work(I was leaving Las Vegas for California) by some customers of mine.  I used to work at a casino as a keno runner,  and it's funny how you get to know everyone.  They become kind of like family.

Eighth Ornament-another lovely Miami Dolphins ornament.  This time it's a blimp.  Hmmm, maybe I should buy some Charger ornaments.  You know, to get my fair share.

Ninth Ornament-Craptastic #2.  See Fifth Ornament. 

Tenth Ornament-made by Mini-Me in fifth grade.  There's going to be another one similar to this later.

Eleventh Ornament-besides the ones made by my kids, this one is truly a favorite.  It was made by a man who I use to chat with online.  He did a lot of blown glass work.  I wish I had truly captured the colors and how beautiful it is.  I still keep the hang tag on it.

Twelfth Ornament-Star Trek #2...need I say more?

Thirteenth Ornament-Told you you'd see a similar one to the Tenth one.  Any guesses why?  Yep, my girls both had/have the same teacher.  Miss La-Di-Da-Di is in fifth grade.

Fourteenth Ornament-I can't remember what grade Miss La-Di-Da-Di was in when she 'decorated' this one.  All the little kids got to do this. I'm thinking it was second grade.

Fifteenth Ornament-Baby's First Christmas...I got this the year my son was born....22 years ago.

Sixteenth Ornament-Wile E.  Coyote.  I'm pretty sure you can tell which ornaments were mine and which belong to my husband lol

Oh yeah, this year we happen to have two Christmas trees.  The big one downstairs and a little one, that Showboat's auntie bought the kids, upstairs.  And did you know that muvee Reveal is only half price right now?  That's pretty kick ass considering it's regularly $79.95.  If you just want to give it a test drive, you could always try the 15-day free trial. :0)