GIVEAWAY! (Yes, that's right.) Trios by Fisher Price

It's been too, too long my friends. So, the time has come for a GIVEAWAY!

First, you'll have to indulge my ramblings as to a PRODUCT REVIEW and then we'll do the GIVEAWAY!

I know, exciting, right?

So, ever since Erin wrote about Child's Play and the "need" for lots of toys and what TYPES of toys, I've seriously thought about the things my kids play with. Like most families, we have too many toys. We've been editing and still the toy box overflows with things that will go weeks without getting looked at.

There are two toy bins, though, that get played with, every single day. The one we're talking about today is our TRIOS. (Our superheros get played with daily too, but that's another day...)

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Trios are made by Fisher-Price and are a NOT made by Lego. But frankly, they are kind of similar. Trios are great for preschoolers because they are capable of more complex design than a Duplo and are a nice hearty size. They are all square or square-ish and yet still manage to produce endless possibilities for creative design.

Another reason we love them at our house is they are moveable. We have wooden blocks as well, but they don't get the same play-time because wooden blocks must stay where you build them. Trios click together to form all kinds of fabulous cars, castles, robots, etc and unless they are HUGE, a kid can pick them up and play with them/ show them off.

Thirdly, Trios come in various "kits" for different types of kids. My kids are super little, so while we own several of the "kits" nothing designed by Fisher-Price ever gets created around here. The kit directions are long gone, but the fun remains. This, of course is also due to my kids' personalities. If your kid thrives on creating what he or she sees on the box, then there are kits galore!  The harder kits go up to age 9, so there is a challenge in there for even slightly bigger kids. The earliest recommended age is 4, but like I said, if your kid is younger than that, they can still play with and create with Trios.

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Finally, they are large and chunky enough not to be a choking hazard. I mean, I suppose if a kid was REALLY determined to swallow a piece they could... but it'd be a challenge.

On the whole "plastic toys are bad" front. Meh. I think creative play is so so so important. I also think that as parents you do what you think is right for your kids. For the record, the fact that Trios are plastic is no problemo, for us. In fact, like I mentioned above, it makes it so they stay together and give a ton of versatility to a kids' creative needs.

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Did I mention there are even PINK BUILDING SETS??? I know. It's so cool!

Now the GIVEAWAY! (OH SO FUN!)

So, we're giving away TWO basic sets.

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They are a great way to start your child's Trios adventures. If you have kids, grand kids, nieces, nephews, kids you babysit for, whomever, I think they will LOVE these. Consider it a very early Christmas present.

So, to ENTER:

1. Leave a comment
2. Become a follower (If you already are, leave an ADDITIONAL comment, saying, "I LOVE YOU AND ALREADY FOLLOW YOU!)
3. Subscribe to the RSS Feed (If you already do, leaven an ADDITIONAL comment saying, "I LOVE YOU AND ALREADY SUBSCRIBE TO YOU!)
4. Let the world know about the GIVEAWAY via your BLOG and/or FACEBOOK and/or TWITTER. Come leave a comment with the link to where ever you socially networked for us. Each link up is an entry. Just leave a comment.
5. Become a FRIEND on Facebook. Already are? Just leave a comment saying "I LOVE YOU AND AM ALREADY YOUR FRIEND!"

So, there ya go. One comment per entry. A lovely random number generator from the interwebs will select the winners.

The comments will close on Tuesday, September 21st at 12:00am. (So, like the END of Monday, get it?)

It's gonna be fun! Since TWO people get to WIN, well, I'm really feeling like it'll be YOU!

Ready, set, go!

P.S. You can buy Trios from US at our Diet Store (top menu, right hand side). Go to the last page. There are Trios listed there. You can get them from any old toy store though too. But that's not as fun. :) 

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Product Review-- Ikea's Kalas dishes

Did I mention a GIVEAWAY?

I know, please try to contain yourselves.

So, first the review.

Ikea is a fun and magical place that tends to be a bit overwhelming if you've ever set foot in one. But, if you have the time to really dig, Ikea has INCREDIBLE stuff and a lot of it is priced so astoundingly low that you'll hardly believe it.

Such is the case with the Kalas dishes collection. Now, these are "technically" for kids, but I must say that Derek and I have been known to eat lunch off the plates and ice cream out of the bowls.

Look how pretty!

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From The Diet Coke Diet

From The Diet Coke Diet

From The Diet Coke Diet

The pros:
- Perfect portion sizes for kids (and adults)
-Fun colors
- Cutlery is not dangerous in the slightest and easy to hold
- Dishwasher safe
- Made of 100% BPA free plastic (and ALWAYS has been)
- Very durable
-Recyclable if you ever get tired of them

Cons:
The stupid cups don't come with lids.

Seriously, that is the ONLY thing I would improve upon these.

The Kalas dishes are a great alternative to paper plates and cups. They are small and so they don't take up the whole dishwasher, they are lightweight and durable so if a kid chucks them, they don't break. Like I mentioned, I eat off these more than my nice dishes.

I highly HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend them to anyone with small children, big children or just for anyone who wants a nice, easy cheap dish. 


FANTASTIC! 


Now, for the 


GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That's right, folks, one lucky winner will be receiving an entire set of Kalas dishes. That includes plates, cups, bowls and cutlery.

THE WHOLE SHEBANG.

You are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO lucky.

How to win?

1. Leave a comment


2. Join the Facebook group (if you are already a member, then just leave a second comment saying, "Already a fan!")


3. Add a Diet Coke Button (HTML code on the side bar) to your own blog page. (If you are already a proud owner, than leave a comment stating, "Already a proud button owner!") 


4. Follow us via Blogger or Google Friend Connect (already a follower? Leave a comment that says, "Already a follower!") 


5. Chat up The Diet Coke Diet AND the Giveaway on your own blog or Facebook. 


Then come back and leave a comment for each thing. FIVE! You can enter up to FIVE different ways.


You are so going to win!

It's okay, keep breathing. I know it's VERY  VERY exciting.

The giveaway closes on Monday, May 17th at NOON. Got that? MONDAY, MAY 17th AT NOON!

So, ENTER.

You will seriously love these dishes.

LINKS:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50096905
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10096907
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90096908
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30096906

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The niceness of Cast Iron

A few years ago, I bought Derek a frying pan for his birthday. (I KNOW! I am astoundingly awesome at gift-buying.) We faithfully used the cheapo pan until the handle fell off about two years after I bought it.

Never one to jump into a decision quickly, Derek took to researching the best kind of frying pan to replace Old Faithful. He very quickly became anti-teflon coating. I got on board that train as well. So that left stainless steel or cast iron. We settled on cast iron.

Why?
1. If it flakes off in your food, it's just iron, which is good for you, rather than weird artificial non-stick surfaces.
2. You don't ever have to wash it. (Seriously, more details below.)
3. It is heavy-duty and should never ever die. If the handle falls off, I get a refund.

Now, you might be thinking, "Cast iron is for camping!" which is exactly what I thought. But, as it turns out, it is perfectly fine to use at home. The camping gods do not mind.

Sidenote: You can get pretty much ANY kind of cookware in the cast-iron form. And some day I hope to replace all of our pots and pans with cast iron. I'm that big of a fan, but for today, I only own my big old stove top pan. (I'd call it a frying pan, but it is not. It's just a jack-of-all-trades pan that I never put in the cupboard. It lives atop my stove 24/7.)

Let's talk #1 on my list first shall we?
So, there is really no way around it. When you cook, the cooking surface can flake off tiny portions into your food. If you use a metal spatula or cooking utensil that scratches the surface, this problem is exacerbated. Teflon is a weird chemically thing that has been found to prevent sticking. So, manufacturers cover every thing with it and declare it a miracle. Well. I don't care for it. I don't want to eat teflon any more than I want to eat lead or mercury. As teflon ages it becomes more and more flaky which guarantees more eating teflon on the consumer's part. EW.

Non-stick is over-rated.

If you allow the cast iron to heat BEFORE you put anything on it, and you use a tiny bit of oil (or water depending on what you're cooking) it is magically just as non-stick as teflon. And if you use a plastic spatula there is virtually no flake-age. If it does sluff off a bit of the top surface, it's iron. Iron in tiny amounts will not kill you or cause cancer. How do you like that?

#2 You don't ever have to wash it.
In fact you shouldn't. Soap and scrubbing destroy the "cure" of a cast-iron pan. When it gets dirty do the following:

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1. Rinse in warm/hot water.

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2. Rub with a non-scratchy cleaning implement (such as a dish rag, sponge or this fancy doo-dad a nylon soft-scrubber).

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From The Diet Coke Diet

DO NOT use soap! YOU DON'T NEED IT!
Why don't you need soap?
Because you heat-dry it. It re-cures the iron keeping it nice and black and clean. The heat kills any/all germs that may remain from your fish fry or whatever.

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It is CLEAN and FRESH and ready for use. No soap, no dishwasher, no weird chemicals of any kind. How cool is that?

#3- Heavy duty.
No mamby-pampy cheap frying pan is going to kill an intruder if necessary. But you wield this bad boy, and your attacker is in serious trouble. My pan will never ever die. Ever.

So, if you're in the market for new pots and pans, consider cast-iron. They are eternal, easy to clean, heavy duty and make really nice pancakes. We got ours at Target. You can see in picture of it being rinsed that it is quite large. I think it's 14 inches. It takes up the whole sink. I can cook four fish fillets or 3 chicken breasts all at once in it.

Oh, and if you want to know more check out http://www.cookingincastiron.com/ . These people are INTENSELY in love with their cast iron. I am a fan.

And in closing- there is something very very down-home-pioneer-esque about cooking with cast iron. It feels homey when the pan starts sizzling. I love it.

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Shark Steam Mop Review

Now, look. I think everyone has certain items in their household that they LOVE. It might be a computer or a sewing machine. Or a dog. (I dunno about that one...) In our house, with very small children who have no qualms about eating crap off the floor, mine are 1. My Dyson and 2. My steam mop.

I used to use Swiffer and was really really disappointed. I need a quick, easy way to clean my floors. Swiffer was NOT the answer. Neither was traditional mopping. It took forever, and using the same dirty mop water over the whole floor seemed really counterproductive.

Enter: THE STEAM MOP!!!!!!!!

Oh, how I love it. I have the 2nd Generation Pocket Steam Mop.

And listen up: BUY THIS VERSION. It is indeed more money than the first generation one. But it's FAR better. You get TWO sides for cleaning before you have to wash it, because it flips over. YAY! It also comes with a triangular attachment, which I LOVE for bathrooms and tight spaces. It also comes with a fluffy, purple thing that I think is for dusting, but I haven't figured it out yet. It comes with two pads for each attachment. It also comes with a cover to use for "carpet refreshing." Having a dog, this is a BIG bonus.

Also, the cleaning surface is much bigger in the newer version than the old. This makes cleaning faster. BUY THIS VERSION!

And now, photographic evidence of the awesomeness:

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From The Diet Coke Diet

And after:

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From The Diet Coke Diet

From The Diet Coke Diet

The Pros:
The things I listed above as well as it SANITIZES and requires NO HARSH CHEMICALS! I'm a fan.

 It's light weight with a super long cord. LOVE.

It works on ALL floor types.

It is not terribly priced.

The Cons:
It requires distilled water. I keep forgetting to buy it. I wish it could handle tap water. It CAN handle it, but it will conk out much sooner than if you use distilled water.

It only has steam jets down the middle of the cleaning surface. Other steam mops I've seen have them distributed all over the head of the mop.

All in all, I am a satisfied consumer. I purchased mine at Sam's Club for $94. I recommend. A lot. Go get one. It will change your life.

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