How to Make Halloween Cake Pops

I made these adorable cake pops for my kids to take to school for Halloween last year. They can even be made ahead of time and frozen before the day you need them.  You can make cake pops by mixing a small amount of frosting and cooked cake crumbs into balls. I tried this method before and found them to be too heavy so I make it easier on myself and use a Babycakes Cake Pop Maker. 

After making the cake pops, I put them in the freezer for about an hour. I melted Wilton candy melts in the microwave (in a narrow mug) for about a minute. To make the cake pop adhere to the stick, you need to dip the stick in the chocolate before sticking it in the cake ball.  Then you stick the cake pop with stick in the chocolate and tap off the excess chocolate. Then I stuck a green Tic Tac on the top as the stem.  I placed the sticks in a sheet of styrofoam to keep them upright while they dried. After the chocolate hardens, you can then wrap them in treat bags and finish them off with an adorable Halloween-themed ribbon. 

These were super easy to make and the kids are so excited to take them to school! 

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Fairy Tale High Dolls Review

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Enter the magical world of Fairy Tale High®, a place where magic happens and beloved fairy tale characters come together for the first time ever in a modern-day high school setting. Toting the latest accessories and sporting designer fashions and hip hairstyles, teenage Snow White, Rapunzel, Belle, Sleeping Beauty, Little Mermaid, Alice in Wonderland, Tinker Bell and Cinderella are brought to life as they might have been before they became fairy tale princesses. 

Fairy Tale High features a collection of beautifully designed fashion dolls, along with a series of webisodes and eBooks found for free at www.fairytalehigh.com, that showcase each character’s  teenage story, revealing the qualities that will eventually make them princesses and the not-so-perfect flaws that trip them up along the way. As students in a performing arts high school, these hip and trendy teenage characters develop their talents and learn new ones as they study music, dance, art, and acting while dealing with romances, jealousies and personal challenges along the way. With guest appearances by classic heroines and villains like Victoria, the Wicked Witch of the West; Pinocchio, who cannot tell a truth; and many others, Fairy Tale High is for the princess-loving girl who is looking for one she can relate to.

Review: My daughter received a Cinderella, Rapunzel, and Belle doll to review and she was absolutely thrilled. Since she loves princesses, dolls, and fashion these were right up her alley.  The princess's popular features (most notably their hair and facial features) were fairly consistent with the looks my daughter has come to know, but their fashions and overall style are modernized.  The overall quality of the dolls, to include the hair, were comparable to other brands of dolls she owns. Features and body shapes were exaggerated similar to the Bratz line of dolls and the fashions were similar.  Bella really liked the fashions, but I would have preferred clothes that were modernized but perhaps not so provocative. As you can see in the picture below, Rapunzel is showing a whole lot of leg and stomach.   Belle and Cinderella's outfits were a bit more appropriate but I would have preferred it if the skirts were just a little longer.

Despite  this concern, the dolls are of good quality and my daughter really enjoys playing with them.  She is 8 and still enjoys playing with dolls and still loves princesses, but her play has been moving from a "fairy tale" theme to more realistic scenerios so these dolls were a nice way for her to combine the best of both worlds.  They are the same size as Barbies so she is able to use cars, houses, etc to help her further engage in play.

Buy it here:  Fairy Tale High Dolls retail for approximately $17.99 and can be purchased from Toys R Us, Walmart, and Amazon.

Connect here: You can connect with Fairy Tale High through their  Website, Facebook, 
Twitter (@FairyTaleHS), Pinterest, and YouTube.

*Disclaimer:
 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

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Total Nutrition Review

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For the past couple of months I have been juicing greens. I have found that it is a great and nutritious way to start the day, but I don't always have the time to juice. Total Nutrition by Immortal Herbs is an easy-prep supplement that contains a diverse blend of premium quality superfood ingredients sourced from across the globe. Their blend makes Total Nutrition extremely dense in nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. In fact, just one tablespoon is enough to provide the average American with an entire day's worth of nutrients! Just add one scoop to 8oz of soy, rice, oat milk, juice, water or smoothie.

The superfood formula is:

• 100% All-natural
• Organic
• GMO-Free
• Vegan
• Raw
• Gluten-free

Review: I am currently recovering from a very serious staff infection gone very bad. My husband has been a dear and has taken very good care of me, but he has not had the time to go to the store to get fresh produce so that I could juice. Convinced that nutrition was one of the best ways to get through this difficult time, I was happy to have a packet of Total Nutrition on hand. With the infection came a lack of appetite as well as an unfortunate inability to taste things correctly. My morning coffee is one of my favorite moments of the day but I could not even choke that down. So, I mixed up the packet with some orange juice and hoped it would give me a natural energy burst.

Now, I am used to green juicing so I did not find the "grassy" flavor to be problematic but it may be a bit more of a shock to someone who is used to fruity juices. The texture was a bit on the thicker side but it went down just fine, especially since I was going through emotional withdrawal from my green juice.  Eight ounces of OJ plus the Total Nutrition was a great, energizing drink. I felt just as good as I do after juicing.  I appreciate that it is organic, which I have not yet been able to afford with my juicing.  I still prefer juicing fresh, but would be more than happy to have Total Nutrition on hand for when that is just not possible. 

Connect Here: You can connect with Immortal Herbs on Facebook and Twitter (@ImmortalHerbs).

*Disclaimer:

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

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The Pasta Shoppe Review and Giveaway!

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 I am Italian and I could probably eat pasta just about every day of my life. It is filling, delicious, and really fits our busy lifestyle. The Pasta Shoppe  is a family-run American business that offers a wide variety of pastas and pasta shapes to make dinner time delicious and fun. They create their pasta in small quantities to ensure quality and they offer everything from sports-themed pastas to pasta nests. 

They also make their pastas available for a fun fundraising program! Rather than selling candy bars, your organization can sell these great pasta products and receive a whopping 40-50% of each purchase! Since there are so many great shapes to choose from, your organization can have a lot of fun with sales. 

Review: I was lucky enough to receive a nice assortment of different pastas to sample. While I have not had the chance to try them all out yet, my family was pretty thrilled with the fun pasta shapes we received. With Halloween so close, this one was the first choice of my children.  The pasta comes with an included recipe, but my kids were begging me for some homemade macaroni and cheese. The fun shapes were very encouraging for my kids and they wanted to help make the "Halloween Mac and Cheese".  The pasta was very delicious.  Although the different Halloween shapes were not quite as evident in the finished dinner, the different shapes actually helped hold the cheese so each bite was a bit cheesier than it has been in the past with classic elbow macaroni....and when it comes to mac and cheese - the cheesier, the better! 

I was really looking forward to trying out the Spinach Basil Garlic Angel Hair Pasta Nests. Their unique creation method include using all natural "sheeted" pasta that are arranged in 1 oz nests. Perfect for the health-conscious pasta-lover, each nest  is approximately 100 calories so portion control has never been easier! I love spinach flavored anything and found this pasta to be very tasty. It did not taste too different from regular pasta so I was grateful to have an option where I can "sneak" vegetables to my kids. The green color did give it away, by my family ate it and enjoyed it with some cheesy-garlic sauce. Another great meal for a busy weekday! 

I look forward to continuing to try the various pastas I received and am also looking forward to trying out different recipes listed on the package.  The Collegiate pasta even has a mix included so you can make a cold salad for the next game! These are definitely great quality pastas and I may make a recommendation to my school for fundraising this year. How fun would it be for the sports teams to sell pastas in the shapes of the sports! 

Connect Here: You can connect with The Pasta Shoppe and follow more of their Fundraising options on Facebook. 

Win it here:

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*I was provided with the above mentioned products in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own. 

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Scott's Liquid Gold Review

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There are many activities in life that I tend to enjoy more and more as I grow older. Cleaning is not one of those and I have a hard time believing that I will ever enjoy this chore. So, I am always looking for products that make household cleaning as quick and easy as possible. Scott's Liquid Gold understands that most people want to spend more time on the things they love, and less time cleaning. Their Dust 'n Go pre-moistened, wax-free polishing cloths can be used for quick touch-ups on all types of wood surfaces as well as on vinyl and leather.

Review: I am a huge fan of any product that will make cleaning quicker. I love that you do not have to search for multiple products, such as cleaner and a cloth, and that everything is in one convenient container.  Each wipe was perfectly moistened - just enough to do a great job cleaning and polishing but not so much that you seem to be saturating your wood surfaces. With just a quick wipe, my wood surfaces were not only dust-free, but also had a nice shine. Check out the before and after pictures:

Before: Dusty, dull surface

After: Shiny and clean!

My favorite feature of these cloths is the scent. There are no harsh chemical smells- only the delicious scent of almond. I would have never thought that almond would make a great cleaner scent, but it is so appealing. I can't stand the smell of chemical cleaners so this is now my favorite smelling cleaner!  One cloth went a long way and I was able to clean all of my living room's wood surfaces with two cloths - not too shabby. I will definitely keep these on hand! 

Connect Here: Like the Scott's Liquid Gold on Facebook and get up to date news on special promotions such as money saving coupons and contests. You can also follow Scott's on Twitter (@scottliquidgold) and Pinterest.

*Disclaimer:

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

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Grace Unplugged Prize Pack Giveaway

About Grace Unplugged, the movie: Having just turned 18, Grace Trey aspires to more than just singing at her church where her father, a former pop star, is the worship leader. So, with the help of Mossy, her dad's former manager, Grace records a cover version of her dad's old Top-10 hit, runs off to Los Angeles, and begins to taste the kind of stardom she's always dreamed about.

Yet with each rung of the ladder she climbs, Grace feels more and more pressure to compromise her values, further straining her relationship with her parents. Will everything she experiences lead her to reject her faith… or rediscover it?

Grace Unplugged opens in theaters October 4 and is “Family Approved” by the Dove Foundation.

The Grace Unplugged Cast:
AJ Michalka
James Denton
Kevin Pollak
Michael Welch

The Grace Unplugged Blog App:
• Are You Ready for ROCKSTAR Life? QUIZ - Are you prepared to be a rockstar in all areas of your life? Take this fun quiz to find out! 
• VIEW Heartwarming GIFs - Get all the action and the best scenes from the movie with this collection of GIFs! 
• WATCH the Music Video - See the brilliant music video that accompanies “All I’ve Ever Needed,” the hit song by AJ Michalka who plays Grace Trey in the movie.

Win it here:



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Information and prize provided by Grace Unplugged. 

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Naturally Fresh Deodorant Breast Cancer Pack Giveaway

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The goal of Naturally Fresh Deodorant Crystal is, and always has been, to help educate and support individuals who are going through the difficult time dealing with breast cancer, or who may have a loved one dealing with this illness.Naturally Fresh Deodorant Crystal’s 100% natural products are the #1 doctor recommended deodorants. These products are specially formulated to be gentle on the sensitive underarm area during treatment and do not introduce harmful chemicals to the body. We encourage our customers to visit your doctor with regular check-ups and use Naturally Fresh Deodorant Crystal on the day of the mammogram. 

Win it here: In support of Breast Cancer Awareness month, they are offering one lucky Cake Mom reader a "breast cancer pack" giveaway  which includes a pink labeled crystal deodorant twist- up stick, a travel-sized roll-on and a MoistStic chapstick.  You can also follow Naturally Fresh on Facebook for month long promotions and breast cancer awareness tips.

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