Silk for Milk 10-Day Challenge

I'm a milk lover. Always have been.

I use milk in my cereal. I add milk to my Apple Dumplings. When I am thirsty, nothing quite quenches my thirst like milk. I use creamers for my coffee (when I first started drinking it, with as much milk as I used, it was almost like the coffee really was only there to warm the milk!).

I recently was asked about taking the Silk for Milk 10-Day Challenge. The Challenge - substitute Silk for times when you would normally use Milk for 10 days. Looking for ideas on how to make substitutions, you can find some here.

We decided to give it a go at my house. We tried substituting Silk where we would normally use milk (or cream).

Since we first tried Silk, we have used the various varieties on our cereal, in our coffee, as a drink at dinner, warmed as Hot Chocolate, as part of the mix for French Toast and in a Smoothie. And, we liked it!

The three favorite Silk products at our house are:

Vanilla Coconut Milk
Vanilla PureAlmond Milk
Dark Chocolate PureAlmond Milk

We like the Dark Chocolate PureAlmond, but when we were drinking it straight up, we had to cut it with milk as it was almost too rich, especially when warmed. On cereal, or in coffee, it was okay because the cereal or coffee would cut the richness. We haven't yet tried the regular Coconut Milk. Since we had tried both the regular PureAlmond and the Vanilla PureAlmond, and preferred the vanilla we started with the Vanilla Coconut Milk. We enjoyed it so much that the next time we purchased it, we selected it again, opting not to try the regular.

For a quick and tasty smoothie, we simply combined frozen pineapple chunks and the Vanilla Coconut Milk. I found that adding the Vanilla Coconut Milk to my coffee was very delicious, especially when I was drinking French Vanilla coffee. We really enjoyed both the Vanilla PureAlmond and the the Vanilla Coconut Milk as a substitute on our cereals - it gives a nice depth of flavor to Rice Chex, Corn Flakes and Chocolate Cheerios!

Interested in trying the Challenge? You can get a 75₵ coupon to help you get started.

Giveaway
One A Busy Mom of Two reader will win a coupon for one Free Silk Milk for themselves, as well as a Silk branded Chicobag.

To enter, leave a comment telling me how you would substitute Silk for Milk in your daily routine.

Additional Entries (leave a comment for each additional entry)

Follow Silk and A Busy Mom of Two on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway. This can be once daily, please be sure to leave a link to the tweet in your comment.

Post about this giveaway and the Silk for Milk 10-Day Challenge on your blog and leave a comment with a link to your post

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Giveaway will remain open until May 12th at 6pm and is open to US residents. Winner will be selected using Random.org random number generator. The winner will be contacted by e-mail (Please make sure that your email address is either in your comment or clearly visible on your profile or blog) and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner may be selected.

No compensation was received for this post. I received a coupon to try Silk Milk for free. All opinions expressed are completely my own. In addition, I have been participating in a BzzCampaign.

The Latest Bzzz

After what has felt like a significant drought, I am busy Bzzz-ing for Bzz Agent again. I actually have 3 campaigns right now. I love the chance to try out new things through Bzz Agent. The Bzz Kit comes with either free product or coupons for free product and information about the product. The goal is for you, once you try the product, to talk to friends and family about the product, share reviews on-line, etc. I love to try new things and when I find something that really works, I love to share, so Bzz Agent is a great program for me.

The first of my campaigns is for COVERGIRL LashBlast Fusion mascara. LashBlast Fusion combines a volumizing brush with a new buildable fiber-stretch lengthening formula that work together to thicken and extend the look of individual lashes. I have been using it for the past few weeks and I like the look. Now, let me preface by saying, I am not a regular wearer of mascara and never have been. I love the look of this mascara on my lashes. In the summertime, my eyes have a tendency to fade away behind my more tan face. Using this mascara has helped my eyes to have "pop" again. I like this. I like that it goes on "thin". What I mean by that is when I apply this mascara it didn't feel thick and goopy on my lashes. Out of fairness, since I don't use mascara often, when I do have it, it sits around and maybe this causes it to thicken, so that when I use it, it does feel thick and goopy. I also worry about eye makeup irritating me because I wear contacts. I have not had issues with the LashBlast Fusion irritating my eyes. I also worry about smudge and smear. I can't remember a show to reference here, but we've all seen them where the woman rubs her eyes or cries and she is left with black mascara around her eyes or running down her cheek. I try not to make a habit of rubbing my eyes or crying, but so far, I haven't had an issue. Overall, if you would like a mascara that will help your lashes look fuller and longer, LashBlast Fusion from COVERGIRL is one you should try.

My second campaign is L'oreal Collagen Micro-Pulse Eye. This is one of the more interesting beauty aids that I have seen. Inspired by professional medical techniques, the L'oreal Collagen Micro-Pulse Eye combines a cream that is formulate with Erasyl and Collagen to help diminish dark circles and smooth away wrinkles with a "ground breaking micro-pulse massager to minimize eye puffiness". I must admit it seemed a little strange to me. There is tube of cream and the lid to that contains, for lack of a better term, a little battery operated vibrator. You apply the cream under your eyes and by any wrinkles or crow's feet that you might have. Then, you recap the tube and turn on the vibrator. You apply this beneath your eyes in 5 locations working from the center out and the center out. Then, using a sweeping motion, you again work from the center out and the center out. It is supposed to immediately deliver crow's feet and eye bags that appear reduced. Over 4 weeks time, it is supposed to deliver crow's feet that appear reduced, dark circles appear minimized and eye bags appear visibly diminished. I will say this, I have constant dark circles, it is more so hereditary than sleep driven, it has reduced them slightly, but they are still there - I guess though, that at some level, I didn't really expect that big of a change from a cream. I feel like my eyes appear less puffy and a little "brighter". The first few times that I used, I think I put too much pressure on the bone beneath the eye socket in using the vibrator and it resulted in a slight headache, I learned from my mistake and use a gentler hand and now do not get headaches. I have only been using the product for a few weeks, so I will have to check back in with an update after four weeks to let you know if I feel like it is delivering on the expected results.

My third current Bzz Campaign is for Horizon Organic Single Serve Milk. Horizon Organic Single Serve Milk comes in four, kid-friendly flavors - 2% Plain, Chocolate, Vanilla and Strawberry. Just like juice boxes, these single serve milks are shelf stable (although from my perspective, they certainly taste best cold because that is how I know milk, nice and cold). I think it is a great alternative to packing juice boxes for lunches at school or picnics and for taking along as a snack on the road. You can purchase these single serve boxes, 8 oz serving each, in 3 count, 12 count or 18 count packages - but I have seen them at some stores sold refrigerated, as individual cartons to provide a quick grab and go beverage (better than soda for the kids any day!). What can I say, I'm a fan. I like the flavor and consistency of the ultra pasteurized organic milks. My favorite of the group is chocolate (I love chocolate, any opportunity to fit it into my day is a good opportunity from my perspective), but the strawberry is one the kids enjoy (we have been making strawberry milk at home a lot lately, too). Each serving is an excellent source of Vitamin A, Vitamin D and Calcium and provides 8g of protein. If you are looking for a healthy and delicious alternative to the everyday lunch box drink for your kids, I would recommend giving the Horizon Organic Single Serve Milk boxes a try.

No compensation was received for this post. The opinions expressed are solely my own. I did receive, as a member of Bzz Agent and an active participant on these three Bzz Campaigns free product (or free product coupons) to try the product and share my experiences.

Silk Pure Almond Milk Review & Giveaway

I've always been a big drinker of milk. To me there is nothing like a tall glass of cold milk. It is refreshing and thirst quenching. I can't imagine life with milk. That is not the case for all though. I have friends that are lactose intolerant and those that are allergic to milk. For them, they have to find alternatives to milk if they want to enjoy things as simple as a bowl of cereal (there is something about the crunch of cereal against the back drop of milk - especially if you have a good chocolate cereal that flavors your milk as you go).

I recently had the chance to try one such alternative - Silk PureAlmond. It is available in both original and vanilla. When I was contacted about trying it, I must say that I was intrigued by the concept - how do you get milk from an almond? Is it from the nut itself or from the plant? I did a little research and learned that it is actually made using ground almonds and water. It is dairy free and has no soy (although you likely are familiar with Silk's Soy Milk line).

We decided to try the Vanilla Almond Milk. It sounded sort of like a treat, compared to plain white milk. There was no denying the taste of almonds in the milk - I must say, I'm not a big nut eater so I might be more sensitive to the flavor than others. I thought it was smooth and creamy, sweet but not too sweet. Definitely a drink I could enjoy, occasionally. I did not use it on cereal or in coffee, but I have to guess that the original and the vanilla would likely be very good over a bowl of cereal or used as a creamer in coffee.

The kids though, thought it was a real treat. They couldn't get enough of it and requested it at mealtime. We had opened the almond milk before we visited my family for the weekend and my kids asked Grandma if she had any almond milk and told her that she should get some - clearly they were enjoying it. At the time we were trying the Silk PureAlmond, I happened to have some chocolate milk in the refrigerator as well and they were choosing the almond milk over the chocolate milk. As a mom, I was quite okay with this. The Silk PureAlmond product only has 60 calories per serving for the original and 90 calories per serving for the vanilla (better than the chocolate milk that we had).

You can learn more about Silk PureAlmond here. You can also find them on Facebook.

Register here to print at .75 off coupon and then find a local retailer to try Silk PureAlmond for yourself.

Giveaway
Would you like to Silk PureAlmond? Courtesy of Silk, I have the opportunity to give away a coupon for a free half gallon of Silk PureAlmond to three A Busy Mom of Two readers. In addition, one of those winners will also receive a Silk PureAlmond branded ChicoBag.

How to enter: Leave a comment sharing your favorite way to enjoy milk (or a milk alternative).

Additional Entries - Please leave a separate comment for each addition entry!:
1. Subscribe to A Busy Mom of Two via RSS or email.
2. Follow me on Twitter AND tweet about this giveaway. Leave a comment with a link to your tweet. This entry can be done daily.
3. Blog about this giveaway. Leave a comment with a link to your post.
4. Promote this giveaway another way, like Facebook. Leave a comment letting me know how you promoted this giveaway.
5. Add my button to your blog. (It’s on my sidebar to the right.) Leave a comment letting me know that you added it (or that it was already there!)

This giveaway will remain open until May 24th at 6 pm. Winners will be selected using random.org and will be limited to one per person. The winners will be contacted by e-mail (be sure to leave one!) and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected. Giveaway is open to US residents only and no PO Boxes.

No compensation was received for this post. I did receive coupons to try the Silk PureAlmond product for the purposes of sharing my experience. The opinions expressed are all my own and those of my family.

Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3 Winners

Congratulations to Bookworm and to Emily, the two winners of the Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega 3 giveaway.

My first draw resulted in the same person having both results. To be fair and have two winners, I redrew for one of them.

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

14 5
Timestamp: 2010-03-10 23:17:51 UTC

Here are your random numbers:

32
Timestamp: 2010-03-10 23:23:22 UTC

Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3

Milk is an important part of my diet and my family's. I've always been very fortunate that my children enjoy milk, like I do, so getting them to drink it has never been an issue. Sometimes though, I still like to give them a treat in the form of chocolate milk. Sure, you can mix chocolate milk up at home, but have you ever noticed that it's never quite the same as a premade chocolate milk that you can buy at the store? Something about the chocolate milk you buy at the store makes it creamier and richer than what you can mix up at home.

When it comes to buying chocolate milk, a lowfat milk is important to me. My family doesn't need the added fat of a whole milk (we used to, but now the kids are older). With chocolate milk, we are still getting the Vitamin D and Calcium that you expect from milk but if I could get even more benefit from a chocolate milk treat, that would be great. So, when I was contacted by Horizon Milk about trying their new Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3, I was excited. We have had their white milk with DHA and enjoyed it, so as with most things in life, I figured chocolate could only improve it.

We picked up a half gallon this weekend. As expected, it was a great tasting chocolate milk. The organic milk always seems to me to have a thicker mouthfeel than the 1% regular milk that I also buy (I think it related to the ultra-pasteurization, but that is not something I have seen specifically). The chocolate, to me, was just right - not too rich. In the wintertime, I frequently enjoy having a warm beverage in the evening. So, one evening, instead of my usual tea, I decided to warm up a mug of the chocolate milk. It was delicious warm. It was so much better than regular hot chocolate (which I usually make with water), plus it had the added benefit of providing me with DHA Omega-3.

According to Horizon, Horizon Organic lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3 provides a great tasting and easy way to add calcium and DHA to your family’s diet. DHA Omega-3 is an important nutrient that helps support heart, brain and eye health, and it’s available in lowfat half gallons. DHA Omega-3 is a natural building block that supports brain development and function throughout life. It’s good for the whole family, but is especially valuable for young children to support their rapid growth.

You can learn more about DHA here.
The Ingredients and Nutritional Data for the chocolate milk can be found here.
You can become a fan of Horizon on Facebook.
You can find a store near you here.

Looking for other great ways to incorporate this milk into your diet? Check out the recipe for a Chocolate Power Smoothie located on their website.

Giveaway:
Horizon has offered to allow me to giveaway 4 coupons each (2 for 1 dollar off a half gallon and 2 for a free half gallon) to 2 lucky readers.

To enter, simply leave a comment on this post, letting me know you would like to try Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3.

For Additional Entries (Leave a Separate Comment for each extra entry):
1. Subscribe to A Busy Mom of Two by e-mail or RSS feed (on my sidebar near the top)
2. Follow me on Twitter and Tweet about the giveaway and leave a comment with a link to your Tweet. (you can use: ” Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3 Review & Giveaway @ABusyMomofTwo - Ends 3/10 - http://bit.ly/dphWYp” ) This entry may be completed once each day.
3. Blog about this giveaway. Leave a comment with a link to your post.
4. Promote this giveaway on Facebook.

Giveaway will remain open until March 10th at 6 pm. Two winners will be selected using a random number generator. The winners will be contacted by e-mail (be sure to leave one!) and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.

No compensation was received for this post. Horizon contacted me directly and provided me two coupons good for one free half gallon of the Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3. In addition, they are providing the four coupons for each of the two winners of this giveaway.

Great Gallon Giveaway

The Great Gallon Giveaway is still going on at Why Milk. Right now, if you are not an instant winner in the daily giveaway, you will still have the opportunity to print a coupon for a free 1/2 gallon of chocolate milk with the purchase of one gallon of white milk. A while ago, it was with the purchase of two gallons, so this is definitely a better coupon. I will caution though that I had some challenges in using an Internet printed coupon for a free item. You might want to ask ahead of time about your store's policy on free coupons from the Internet (and as my store manager suggested, leave the page intact rather than clipping the coupon).

In addition, explore the site and learn more about milk. You can read why many are against a recent movement to ban low fat chocolate milk from schools - and if you agree, join by signing the petition.