Chocolat Frey Tasting Party

This spring was supposed to be very different for all of us, in pretty much every way, wasn't it? Travel plans, work, vacation, school, the minutia of day-to-day life, it all got completely turned upside down with the onset of Coronavirus, and I'm not gonna lie it was a hard adjustment!

One of the less important things for me that I had to change around was this chocolate-tasting party I had planned on hosting. Earlier in the year I was given the opportunity from Tryazon & Chocolat Frey to host a party showcasing some of their premium Swiss chocolate products. They sent me a variety of delicious chocolates - dark, milk, blonde (which is basically caramelized white chocolate and AMAZING), with delicious honey-almond nougat and nuts. This chocolate is seriously scrumptious, I could definitely eat the entire contents of the package they sent me, but I refrained - which was hard when right after I got it they had to postpone the parties because of the virus!!

Like me, you may not have ever heard of 'Chocolat Frey', but they are actually a part of the 'Sweetworks' brand which also makes Sixlets and Ovation (those little chocolate sticks with mint/orange in the middle, remember?!). So you know you're getting something good. First off, this chocolate is Swiss-made. Need I say more? I don't think I do, but just in case: Switzerland is one of the top 4 chocolate-producing countries in the world, and definitely among the countries that produce the best chocolate. Lindt & Toblerone? Swiss chocolate. And Chocolat Frey is right up there with the best! Not only that, they are a "bean-to-bar" company, which means they work closely with the farmers they source their cocoa from, and use sustainable growing practices. They work carefully to be responsible to both the employees at every stage of production, as well as the planet. This means that while you're feeling great having a delicious treat, you can also feel good about the company your purchases are supporting!

I had planned to host a dessert night with friends where these Chocolat Frey products were the showcase item, but after a few months of waiting it became clear we'd have to do something different. While my area has started to reopen and people are feeling ready to get back to normal life, I know a lot of my friends still have many concerns and are continuing to practice lots of social distancing. So I felt my next best choice would be a more individualized approach. I made up a fresh batch of orange muffins (because orange and chocolate are a match made in heaven!), and packaged them up with a few samples of the chocolates, which I then took around town to various friends. The yummy treats were well-received!

I also had a chance to have a few people get together and I was able to make a cake for it. Naturally I chose this opportunity to not only showcase the chocolate, but to feature it in the cake. Another match made in heaven, I went for strawberry & chocolate. The end result was so delicious! My husband is not a huge fan of chocolate, but even he said that the quality chocolate added the perfect touch throughout the cake. The other guests all agreed that it tasted amazing. I'd say despite the challenges presented by social distancing and changing everything up, it all turned out pretty good and gave me a chance to actually introduce people from various social groups to the brand.

Personally, my favorites ended up being the blonde crunchy nut (almond) bar and the milk chocolate crunchy nut (hazelnut) bar - seriously the chocolate is sooooo smooth and velvety, and the roasted nuts added a perfect amount of texture and added flavor dimension. Each bite was perfection, and took quite a bit of willpower to save it for sharing! Other brands better watch out now that Chocolat Frey is on my radar!
#ChocolatFrey #chocolatfreyna #swisschocolate #beantobar #premiumchocolate #rainforestalliance #Tryazon @ChocolatFreyNA

Strawberries & Chocolate - no better combination, especially when it's ChocolatFrey from Switzerland!

Everyone agrees: ChocolatFrey takes the cake!

Making up some goody bags for friends to be able to enjoy the sweet taste of Swiss Chocolate, from a responsible distance!

Backyard Pool Party with Bestway!!

That's right, you read that correctly! We got such an incredible opportunity this Memorial Day weekend! Tryazon picked us as one of the hosts for their latest party - Bestway Splash on the Grass - where they sent us a brand new pool to test out and review. I was kinda shocked but I knew my 5-year old water bug was going to be so pumped!! Thankfully the package arrived just in time and I was able to set it up before we had all of Dan's family in town for the long weekend.

Bestway (check them out here: http://www.bestwaycorp.us/) has a ton of amazing products from camping, to swimming, to snow! We were lucky enough to be able to test out one of their latest in above-ground swimming pools. The Power Steel Swim Vista Series II has a bunch of awesome features - first off, it's huge! Plenty big enough for a group of adults, and absolute heaven for a bunch of toddlers! The one we tried out was 18feet across, but they also have a 22foot size. The steel construction means that the pool is sturdy  - which is good because after I first had it set up and started filling it, we had some pretty nasty winds for a day! But it stood strong.

They've also created this pool with "layman construction skills" in mind. Once we had it figured out, setup was really pretty simple and didn't require any tools other than a screwdriver (and a little old fashioned elbow grease). I will admit I was pretty frustrated by the instructions provided (or lack thereof) for setting this pool up. The manual was extremely minimal and the few pages showing diagrams for setup were vague, at best. There were no words, and with so many parts that looked so similar, it meant I had to basically do it all through trial and error. Honestly, it was worse than trying to assemble IKEA furniture! They at least have their parts clearly numbered/labelled. It took quite a while and was annoying. The instructions say it should take 2-3 people only 20-30 minutes. That was an absolute lie. For the trickier bits I had Dan help me, but the whole process ended up taking me a couple hours. It was not nearly as quick as they make it out to be. The worst part was trying to assemble the ladder. Mine came with NO instructions whatsoever. I'm not sure if that is standard or just got overlooked in my box, but it was definitely not something that could be assembled completely through common sense. I spent FOREVER trying to find an instruction sheet online, and searching Youtube, until I finally found one video showing a ladder fairly similar to mine, which helped me finally get it sorted out. Once I understood what I was doing, it was all quite simple, but there needed to be more initial direction so that you could actually get it started.

Anyway, once the hassle of setup was complete things went smoothly. Obviously, for such a large pool it's going to take a fair bit of time to fill completely. Due to time constraints, and the fact we had a bunch of small children who would be utilizing this a ton, we opted not to fill ours completely until after the inital Memorial Day party. I think this was best - it allowed everyone to splash and cool off, without having to worry too much about kids drowning while everything was a little crazy. But when it's a little calmer, this pool is totally big enough for kids to learn how to swim in!

One of the unique, cool features about these pools is their windows! Yup, the pool has windows. Four, to be exact. The kids at our party loved looking through them and being able to see what everyone else was doing. AND, having a window means I can let the kids play while I sit outside and look in to check on them from my chair (yay for mini "almost" breaks!). I also appreciated the thought they put into the design on the outside of the pool. It has a wicker pattern, making it look more natural and appealing in your yard than other above-ground pools I've seen.

We had a fun-filled weekend (and many hours since) thanks to this cool new backyard addition! The kids were beyond excited to have their own pool and it has brought over the neighbor kids since they found out.

Verdict: this seems to be a high-quality, sturdy pool that will stand up to many, many hours of splashing, and has a nice look to it. My only issues are that it took way longer to set up than they indicated, and that was partially due to the completely horrible set of instructions, or the complete lack thereof for some parts. It all worked out in the end though, and the kids are loving it, so I'd say this was a definite Summer-time mom "win!" @Tryazon @Bestway_official @BestwayUS #Tryazon #Bestway

 Check out the fun through Bestway's innovative pool windows!

 Best way to beat the heat of a Texas Summer!

 All set up and ready to fill!

Brainiac Kids Yogurt Party

My kids LOVE yogurt. Heck, we all love it. We go through quite a bit of yogurt at our house, especially the kids. Jax would literally eat it for every single meal, every single day, if I'd let him. Needless to say, we were excited about this party pack sent to us from Tryazon and Brainiac Kids Foods.

These yogurts are filled with "BrainPack", the brands unique blend of brain-fueling nutrients such as Omega-3 DHA, ALA, and Choline, which have all been proven as vital components in a healthy diet to aid growing minds! So I mean, pretty cool to have a food that is not only fueling your kids body physically, but their developing minds as well! Even better, when it comes to the basic ingredients, these ones definitely rank better than some on the market. Many "kids" foods are loaded with extra sweeteners to ensure that children will actually prefer them, but Brainiac Kids yogurt has less sugar AND more protein. Less of what they don't need, and more of what's going to keep them feeling full? I'd say that's a win. Throw in the fact that Jax loved it and immediately downed one of each variety, meaning it obviously still tastes good - well, that right there is a win-win!

We tried out 2 flavors - Strawberry Banana, and Cherry Vanilla. I was a little nervous because my kids usually prefer pretty basic flavors when it comes to yogurt, but both were a hit. The yogurts come in 3 different serving varieties - cups, tubes, and drinks. We couldn't find the cups at our store, but with such young kids the tubes and drinks were better anyway. Less mess, and more portable!

Our party pack also came with other goodies besides product coupons as well. The puzzle was bit too difficult for the young kids, but the yo-yo's were a hit for child and adult alike! Everyone had a good time trying to remember tricks we had learned years ago when we used to have them, and even though none of the kids were able to do it, they enjoyed playing around with them nonetheless, and seeing them light up! We also got a sheet of stickers for each child. And as anyone with young children knows, stickers are always a hit!

So far I have encountered just 2 downsides to these products. First, the price. One package (4 drinks or 8 tubes), is $4.99 at Central Market. Not gonna lie, that's a fair bit more than I typically spend on yogurt for my kids! So that's something that dissuades me from purchasing when given the option, despite the other positive benefits. The other negative is product availability. So far the only location you can purchase Brainiac yogurt is at Central Market stores - and those are only in Fort Worth and Dallas, both about a 30-45minute drive from me. I don't know about you, but driving that far out of my way just for a specific brand is a little unfeasible for me and my kiddos! It kinda stinks, because if it's just too far away and not where you actually do your shopping, of course you're not going to buy it!

Overall though, it was a delicious, well-made product and a great idea to get more brain healthy foods on the market. We had a fun time trying them out and sharpening our minds with the included "brain games", and appreciated the opportunity to try them out. Thanks Tryazon and Brainiac Kids!

 Our Party Pack - puzzle, stickers, yo-yos, and delicious yogurt (with coupons for guests as well)

 Even big kids like Brainiac yogurt!

Veteran's Day with Ritter Sport Chocolate!

This weekend I had a pretty cool opportunity to host a chocolate party! If you know me, you know there couldn't possibly be anything I'd love more than to have a night dedicated to trying out a bunch of chocolate. As it was also Veteran's Day, we got to use this as an opportunity to also think about all the men and women over the years who have served so selflessly, and to appreciate what their sacrifices have done to give us the lies we lead each day. When we think about it, literally every day of our lives is impacted by what our veterans have worked for, and continue working for still. The fact that we have so many freedoms, and the choice to do what we want with our lives, would not be possible otherwise. I, like most people, have many people in my family line who have served in various capacities, and I love the chance to specifically honor them and set aside a day to fully appreciate them each year. This year I actually managed to both find AND remember to wear my poppy! Most American's don't understand the significance of the poppy, so I love the chance to explain when others see me wearing it and ask about it. The poppy is a common symbol of reverence to commemorate veterans, usually in Britain/Canada, in reference to the poem "In Flanders Fields". The poem was written by a Canadian doctor after seeing tons of the beautiful red flowers growing out of the wreckage in the battle fields of WWI. They are very popular in Canada and we always wore them for Veteran's Day (or as we call it, Remembrance Day). It is a beautiful reminder of the delicacy of human life, and those who lost theirs so that we might enjoy ours.

So, thanks to a generous opportunity from #Tryazon and #RitterSportChocolate, I was given (a LOT) of free samples in order to host a fantastic gathering. The most fun bit was putting on our "fancy people" personas to conduct a blind taste test of their different varieties! Honestly, most of us didn't do so hot when left completely to our own devices, we got a little closer when we allowed ourselves to sift through the flavors on the table and use those to pick out some options. I don't think any of us had ever even tasted Marzipan before! But it was super fun, even for those who were way off with our guesses! Overwhelming consensus: strawberry creme was our favorite to try, and they were ALL delicious.

Unfortunately, the 2 servicemen I'd had in mind when applying to host this party, were unable to attend (I mean, one of them is 80-something years old and always going off on his little projects to the deer lease without telling anyone, so I shouldn't have been surprised!), but we still enjoyed the chance to reflect on how much all their service has impacted our daily lives. It was fun to take a bunch of the mini squares samples and create little signs as a "shout-out" to their hard work, and the kids got involved by coloring their own signs - pictures thanking all the veterans.

It was a fun afternoon for us to get together with some family, and to try some really yummy chocolate. I've seen Ritter Sport chocolate many times in the grocery store, but I never realized how quality the product actually is and how delicious the (many) varieties are! I mean cornflakes in chocolate sounds odd, but it was actually sooo good! Everybody got to take lots of chocolate home, and I'll definitely be buying more for myself in the future.

The spread!

This "rally sign" was our attempt to honor the many veterans who go on to serve in the police force afterwards. Thought we unfortunately didn't have any white "minis", we wanted to represent both the American Flag, and the Blue Line that indicates support for our Police forces!

These displays are our re-creation of the Medal of Honor. The left has some dark-wrappered "minis" to try and bring out the colors of the medal, but I don't know which is better...hmm.

The Famous poppy, along with the phrase "Lest We Forget" (again, used more in Britain/Canada), reminding us to be ever-conscious of what others gave for us.

Kind of hard to tell, but this one was supposed to be dog tags!

Tank, Airplane (Fighter? Bomber? Scout? Who knows..), & Submarine

My Poppy ♡

Rituals Try-a-Box

Okay, if you know me at all, you know I am NOT high-maintenance. Like, at all. When it comes to beauty, fashion, whatever, I'm pretty low-key. And I basically never indulge myself with 'luxury' items like fancy soaps or whatever - they just seem so overpriced for something that does the same job as whatever I got on sale at Walmart!

Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't like to be pampered, or have nice stuff. It's just usually so low on my list of priorities, that those little niceties usually get lost along the way. (For example, shaving. I LOVE the way my legs feel right after, but let's be honest.... wait, let's not be too honest here. You don't wanna know how infrequently I really do shave. ;) Suffice it to say, I save a lot of money on razors every year!)

Back to the topic at hand! I, like any girl, like a chance to feel fancy or pampered every once in a while, so I was super pumped when I got a chance from Tryazon to try a new line of skincare products for free!! They sent me a gift set from Rituals, which makes a bunch of different products - from candles, to makeup, to 'soulwear' (what I would classify as comfy Saturday clothes!). You can check out all their stuff here: www.rituals.com

The company aims to produce luxury products, without those high-end prices. A lot of the products on the site I still wouldn't pay those prices for (because I am ridiculously cheap!) but the price for the gift set I got is actually extremely reasonable - only $28! It contains smaller-sized bottles of 4 products in their new 'Rituals of Sakura' line. There is a foaming shower gel, shower oil, body scrub, and body cream.

Rituals of Sakura is focused on appreciating more of the little moments in each day, and taking time to slow down and focus on small luxuries - like a nice, foaming body wash in a hot shower! All of the products have a super nice, not-too-powerful cherry blossom scent (it smells amazing) and they really all do feel like luxury products. It was definitely nicer than whatever things I've been used to using. I have really enjoyed trying all the products out. My favorite is definitely the body scrub - I've been using it all over for a gentle exfoliation, followed up with the body cream. I do prefer lotions, as cream is kind of too thick for me, but it is still a really nice product. The shower gel lathers up really nicely and makes my skin smell nice and clean! (Who doesn't love the smell of cherry blossoms?!) Finally the shower oil - I do find it has an odd color; it looks a bit like olive oil. But it's nice in the shower and doesn't leave any residue or make my skin feel sticky afterwards.

Bottom line: my only real complaint about the products has been that the gift-sized bottles have really, REALLY small printing on the labels and they are super hard to read!! But other than that I'm loving my little luxurious moments in the shower (it helps me forget about the 2 screaming kids at my feet, anyway). @ritualsusa #ritualsusa #shareyourslowdown #tryazon

Looks fancy!!

Gotta get those soles ready for summer!!

No plastic scrub beads - yay environment!

S'mores Party!!

I got another chance to try out some new products from Tryazon! Although we had some people cancel at the last-minute with some other crazy things going on this weekend, we were able to still have a fun time with those of us who came. Plus this was so easy and fun, we might have to have another party with those who didn't make it!

I was so happy when I got the e-mail saying they'd chosen me to be a party host for this, because I was super excited about this baby-sized, indoor s'mores maker! They sent me a free new one to try out (as well as a second to give away at the party!). Don't tell me that Dan and I are the only ones who've used their gas stove to make s'mores when a random craving hits....?! I know you've done it! Sterno's new S'mores Maker Jr to the rescue!! I'm super lazy, but this thing really couldn't have been easier. It literally took less than 1 minute to set up and light, then we were ready to start roasting! I don't know what the stuff inside the can is, but I just put a match to it, and it lit up immediately and was a fantastic little heat source. (Good thing for the safety screen as well, because we had a couple fascinated toddlers who might have gotten some nasty burns otherwise!!).

Then it was time for S'mores! This product comes with 2 little roasting sticks that can actually be taken back apart once your done, to store nicely in the box (rather than just being a permanent set-up that you then have to store the sticks someone else - AKA lose!). I do wish it came with more than 2 though. If it's just you and hubby having a late-night snack that's fine, but if you've got friends/kids joining, you're going to have to use plain skewers or something (maybe a fork, like Dan and I did back in our dating days. 🍴Ya work with what ya got, am I right?). For this party, I actually opened up the other box to use the 2 that came in there, and we all just shared those 4. It was fine, but I'd definitely love to have at least 4 in the package. So, along with the S'mores maker, Tryazon also sent us some free marshmallows from a company called "Plush Puffs". Apparently these are not really new, but I had never heard of them. They are gourmet, hand-made marshmallows that come in a bunch of fun flavors. I have to say I was a little less-than-impressed when I opened them up. I was super excited when I was reading about them, but the actual product didn't *quite* deliver in my opinion.
          *Pro: true to the claims, they ARE super soft. And they are super delicious. I got the Caramel Swirl and Vanilla Bean flavors in my party pack, and both were tasty. I really really liked the Vanilla.
          *Con: The softness meant they were also prone to stickiness, and a lot of mine were stuck together. Some I had to set aside for my kids to just eat because they were all mashed and wouldn't work for roasting. Speaking of roasting, these marshmallows are probably not your best bet. They did carmelize nicely, but they mostly just kind of melted and mine was falling apart and coming off my stick as I tried to put it on my s'more.
          *Bottom line: good flavors, probably best for use in other pan-type desserts where they'll be cooked in the oven and it's okay if they're super melty/don't hold together (like a regular marshmallow will do even after roasting). I probably wouldn't buy them on my own, but if I had a chance I'd love to try some other flavors.

All in all, it was a fun little event - the kiddos definitely loved being able to have a "fire" and cook marshmallows INSIDE. 😮And we got to try out different flavors, with different chocolates. Safe to say, after the long winter 'break' I've rekindled my love for the always-delicious S'more - just in time for summer! With how compact and easy this S'mores Maker Jr is, I'm either in a lot of trouble, or my life just got infinitely more awesome! 🍫🔥🐷

I'm back...?!

Hey Guys!

I logged onto here and holy crap - I haven't written a single post single Lexi's birth story! My second baby is now 1.5years old -- behind much?! Ah well. I'm back. Kinda. We'll see how things go. I just wanted to post quick about a fun night we just had at the Brumwell house - pizza party!

Say what? Maggie hosted a party? With actual people, at her house, that she had to talk to??? I know, I know, insane. But I got an opportunity through a group called Tryazon to check out some new products from a company called Sagaform (Scandinavian Lifestyle Design, I actually kinda love so many of the products I saw online!!) so why not?! A good chance for me to stretch my boundaries, no?

We invited a few families over, which means a ton of kids so it was a little chaotic. Eight adults and 11 kids under the age of 8/9! But it was a ton of fun. We set out a bunch of different toppings and pizza crusts, then had everyone go down the line and make their own pizza! The kids of course were all much more interested in just going crazy all being together, but it was fun for the adults to be creative and make something exactly for your tastes. And, we all got to sit around and chat while the kids completely entertained themselves  - it was almost like a night off! ;)

While browsing Kroger recently I even found some Italian soft drinks on sale that were a perfect companion to our little "Italian" theme. I also made some little trivia games for people to try winning prizes - some of the Sagaform products I received. That was fun and we learned that we really do not know much about herbs/spices! But it was a good time and everyone got to go home with a fun new kitchen utensil.

Check out my favorite of the goodies below! It's a fantastic little herb pot that has a hole on the side specifically for watering so that the plants can soak up water right from the bottom, which I guess helps them grow better than pouring on top! It's small, simple, cute... right up my alley!