24 Days of Tea Advent Calendar and 12 Days of Tea Gift Set

A complimentary Tea Advent Calendar and 12 Days of Tea Gift Set was provided to enable this review. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family. 

When I was a kid, I was not a fan of tea. I'm not sure where or when I had had it but I remember thinking that it was without flavor and left a 'dry' aftertaste in my mouth. I knew that I also had tried and didn't care for sun tea. My feelings about hot tea changed when I was in high school. I had a really good friend that was a fan of tea and when I was at her house to work on a project or doing homework, she would often times drink tea but it wasn't plain tea. Rather she was always drinking different flavors and the aroma was enticing. I think the first tea that she had me try was a peppermint tea around the holidays. There was something that was so good about the fresh pop of the flavor. She also introduced me to apple cinnamon, lemon, and probably a few other flavors.

As I got older, I became more adventurous and liked to try new flavors. Dining out, hotel breakfast bars, and offerings at business meetings were the easiest places to try new flavors and further experience tea. There are a few that are definitely not for me and I have a tendency to primarily purchase herbal teas. I enjoy a mix of loose tea and tea bags. I like the flexibility to adjust the intensity of the tea with loose tea but there is an on the go convenience to bag tea. My tea making supplies expanded with time too. I have a tea kettle for boiling water. I have both a ball infuser that screws together and a snap ball tea strainer. One year for Christmas, I received a carafe with a center infuser that allows me to make several cups at once. A few years ago, I picked up a ToastTEA travel tea infuser from Adagio tea which makes taking loose tea on teh go a little easier.

Winter is my favorite hot tea season and it is my go to beverage when I am looking for something warm in the afternoon or evening. Lately, I have been preparing myself a mug of tea after the work day winds down. Being at home, makes the transition a little different but I have found that putting up my feet and sipping on tea is such a great way to relax and unwind. I think that with all that is going on, the ability to take a few minutes of down time and relax is an important thing for mental health.

If you are looking for a gift for someone on your list, check out these two items from Adagio tea. The 12 Days of Christmas Tea Gift Set comes with 12 varieties of tea, each in it's own tin that you can hang from your tea or stack for a cute ornament image. I love that they are each ornaments that you can hang in your tree. How fun it would be to seek each numbered tin on the tree. The teas include: White Pear, Rooibos Peacan Turtle, Lavender Lemon, Candy Cane, Golden Monkey, Jasmine Pheonix Pearls, Blue Mango, Cream, Cha Cha, Earl Grey Bravo, Fruit Medley, Rooibos Nutcracker. I'm curious to see what Golden Monkey is and the Rooibos Nutcracker I am expecting to love. Of course, it not only makes a great gift for the poeple on your list but you may also decide to make it a gift for yourself and experience the twelve flavors.

Looking for a unique Advent calendar? This Tea Advent Calendar from Adagio makes an 8 oz serving of tea each day, as you count down to the holidays.

It gets the thumbs up from my daughter, as she noted, the numbers are not in order, which from her point of view makes for a better Advent calendar.

I was thinking that buying one for your friends and family, could be a fun way for everyone to connect through a common experience. Enjoying a cup of the same tea while video chatting with your friends or family could help bring your together in a year where there is real potential that more families are apart during this time of year than normal. With 24 unique teas, you will have the chance to try many flavors. If you are enjoying it as a group, perhaps you could make a chart and rate the groups' favorites. The added bonus is that you would then have insite and could order more of their favorite tea as a gift in the future.

Do you have a favorite variety or flavor of tea? Who in your family would enjoy these gifts?

A complimentary Tea Advent Calendar and 12 Days of Tea Gift Set was provided to enable this review. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family.

Wahl Deep-Tissue Massager Review and Info on a Giveaway

I don't know about you, but lately, I seem to have a lot going on in my life and quite frankly, with that has come a lot of stress. When I get stressed, I definitely can feel it in my shoulders and back. I think this is a combination of things - both the physical impact of the stress itself and the side-effect of tossing and turning or sleeping in an awkward position at night (stress either causes me to be constantly moving and awake at night as my mind runs or it causes me to conk out not noticing that I am in a bad position for sleeping).

Sometimes, I can rely on exercise and stretching to help relieve some of this stress, but the deep down tension, sometimes that only remedy for that is a massage. I would love to have the time (and the money) to go for a therapeutic massage at the spa on a regular basis, but there just isn't time (or money) for that. So, sometimes, you have to find other ways.

Recently, I had the chance to try the Wahl Deep-Tissue Percussion Therapeutic Massager through MamaBzz. Wahl makes a whole series of massagers, including Deep-Tissue, Flex Therapy and Heat Therapy. They are currently running a Facebook promotion, where you can nominate a mom to win a mom relief package:

• Moms work hard all day, every day, and to thank them, Wahl - the company that invented the electric massager - is giving 50 massagers to 50 deserving moms this Mother’s Day.
• Through its first-ever Mom Relief Initiative, Wahl is providing the tools to help moms achieve the kind of sought-after relief that causes spas to book out Mother’s Day weekend months in advance, and why the spa is among the top gifts for mom every year.
• Wahl therapeutic massagers are serious pain management tools that offer powerful motors variable intensity control and interchangeable heads, allowing you to customize your massage experience.

Health Benefits of Massage
• Massage is not only an effective method of pain management, but it also contributes greatly to overall well-being.

• Massage can increase blood flow, which effectively reduces pain tension, relieves muscle tension and soothes inflammation.

• In addition to providing effective pain relief, massage can also greatly improve circulation, regulate blood pressure, reduce anxiety, and provide an immense feeling of relaxation, all of which contribute greatly to physical and emotional well-being.


For more on the health benefits of massage and the full line of therapeutic massagers, make sure to visit wahlmassagers.com. This new online resource is the first of its kind and provides consumers with information on chronic pain management methods tailored to fit their specific needs.

The massager features a 9' cord, allowing you to plug it in and settle yourself in some place to enjoy the massage.

The handle is designed so that you can use it to work out tension in your own back.

The massage intensity is controlled by a dial that allows you to adjust it to just the right intensity for you and even adjust it as you work an area if needed.

The massager includes four attachments, further allowing you to customize the massage experience. The first is the Deep Muscle Attachment. This attachment "thumps smoothly, creating a gentle, relaxing massage for all over general body use." The second is the Raised Bump Attachment, which has a "wide surface for an all-over muscle massage". Then, there is the Accupoint Attachment which "targets deep into tissue, great for pinpointing concentrated areas." Fourth, is the Four Finger Flex Attachement with "soft finger-like nodes" which "replicate a human touch massage."

One thing that I thought was really nice is that the directions provide information on massage techniques for everything from your shoulders and neck to your legs to your scalp.

Previously having owned one of those massagers that were designed to attach to the back of your chair, I must say that I really liked that with this Wahl Deep-Tissue Massager I was able to target a specific section of my back to work out the tension in a particular area. I also liked that it was useable to massage my legs and arms as well. I like that the design of the massager allows you to address your own tension, but you could still use the massager on someone else (which might be more relaxing).

Although the directions provide techniques for massaging the face and scalp, I found the percussive nature of the massager to be too intense for me to use on either of those areas, even on the lowest setting.

Would you like to win a "relief package" from Wahl? As I mentioned, they are currently running a giveaway on their Facebook page, here are the details:

• Beginning April 26 and running through May 13, those who like Wahl Home fan page on Facebook can nominate a mom to win a mom relief package from Wahl, whether it’s your mom, grandmother, wife, daughter, a friend or yourself.
• To enter the Mom Relief Initiative, simply post a comment explaining why the mom on your list deserves relief—maybe they’re a single mom who does it all, a working mom who never takes a break, a grandmother who’s always been there…every mom has a story and every story matters.
• Entries will be judged on their uniqueness and sincerity and the winners will be selected once the contest wraps up on May 13. Stories MUST be submitted before then in order to be considered.


No compensation was received for this post. A Wahl Deep-Tissue Massager was provided for the purposes of this review. Information was provided by Wahl, through MamaBzz about the product and giveaway. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family.