Mealtime Magic: GravyMaster

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of GravyMaster for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

With a name like GravyMaster, you wouldn't think it would be useful for anything but gravy for meat and potatoes. But part of making magic with a meal is being creative and using things outside the box - like taking pretzel dough and using it to make a cake instead, or using gelatin mix to make jelly. GravyMaster helps you Master the meal by providing a great way to lock in flavors, add a flavor boost, caramelize foods (yummy carmelized onions, for example), and more!

GravyMaster has been around since 1935 - so I'm really surprised I haven't heard of it before, but I'm sure going to look for it next time I go shopping. The list of uses on the website really intrigues me, especially the grilling and marinade recipes. It doesn't look like it would be very hard to use, and certainly is versatile - there are recipes for fish and seafood, chicken, beef, and ham and pork. Plus, there are vegetarian-friendly recipes as well, including Meatless Minute Gravy and a recipe for stuffed mushrooms or one for stuffed peppers that could easily be modified to be vegetarian. I'm certainly interested in how I might be able to add something like this to my cooking repertoire!

What would you make with GravyMaster? Check out the website for ideas and post your favorite recipe in the comments below.

Shopping Savings: Zenni Optical

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Zenni Optical for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Do you or your kids wear eyeglasses but you're looking for a way to save some cash - especially on kids' frames, when they may be hard on them, or they might grow out of the them quickly? Zenni Optical offers cheap eyeglasses - and I've actually used their site before, so this is something tI can definitely endorse. My experience was very smooth. I was able to find a pair of basic black frames for less than $20, even though I have an astigmatism. Prices do vary, but if you don't need anything fancy, you can get frames for incredibly cheap. Even if you do have special needs, you can check out Zenni Optical, and I'd assume that you'd have the same success I would. The only downside I experienced is the pupillary distance. This is a measurement that eye doctors take to make sure the lenses match up with where your eyes will focus. It's very difficult to take on your own, and most of the time it's not written on your prescription sheet, so you'd need to ask - or guess, which is what I did the first time. I figured I could gamble since my glasses are for occasional use only. The really nice thing is that they sent along a ruler made to help measure the pupillary distance more accurately, so I was able to double-check it and tweak it if necessary for next time. My frames were cheap (the ones pictured are my current pair and they look cute on me), and have held up to my toddler grabbing them, so I'll definitely be ordering from them again!

Parenting Pointers: Trends in Parenting

I had an opportunity to interview Marian Salzman, author or co-author of books such as Next: Trends for the Near Future and Buzz: Harness the Power of Influence and Create Demand about future trends that she sees.

1) How do you come up with the "nexts" that will be featured?

It’s all about pattern recognition, although that’s a big bucket into which I toss data analysis, a nose for reading implications into journalistic reporting, and also the wealth of experience I bring when it comes to constructing possible and probable visions of the near future. And then there’s the firsthand trendspotting—lots and lots of eavesdropping on café conversations and snooping into strangers’ supermarket baskets. I’ve found that the best trendspotters spend more time listening, reading and watching than they do talking. I am an observer; I watch and listen to anything that gives me a bird’s-eye view on how people are reacting to various situations and scenes. And I consume enormous amounts of pop culture, be it serialized television, radio, supermarket fiction or tabloid newspapers in the U.S. and from overseas capitals. I also analyze about 4,000 news sources through the Internet. I live in perpetual anticipation and love every minute of it.


2) How did you get started as a "trendspotter?"

After I finished school, I worked as a journalist for a couple of years but didn’t get my first real taste of trend forecasting until I got a job in market research for youth marketing, which is when I worked out that suggesting trend-based angles was a good way to reach our clients’ audiences. One job led to the next. I would have a theory, it would prove accurate, it would help a client and I began to develop a reputation. I wish I could say I’d been super-ambitious about doing it, but really it just came naturally to me.


3) Were there trends in parenting that are prevalent but didn't make the top five?

I think we’re going to see how much digital and mobile will dominate the lives of children and parents these days- instead of isolating families from each other, I do believe we’ll be seeing more time spent together utilizing digital- either in the gaming space or shopping for family items or learning. On the flip side and because of the domination of digital, I can see family vacations moving into a place of enjoying nature, the outdoors, and the ability to shut off. But one of the scariest trends to come out of recent weeks is the alarming accusations at Penn State, and now Syracuse. Traditionally, parents have worried about their young daughters in terms of sexual predators, but now the focus will shift to how to protect our boys as well- and look for more parents to hesitate about their boys playing team sports at any age- from concussions to heat stroke to things far more sinister, all eyes will be on sports programs in terms of reform.

4) I notice you say that at some point, the pressure of current parenting trends will be too much. What do you think will happen at that point?

The same thing that is happening in our 24/7/365 world- a complete fatigue will set in and the era of alpha parenting will need a reboot. At some point, I do believe we will go back to a time where our overscheduled little ones will be able to enjoy being kids again- playing outdoors, the occasional junk food, and a more relaxed schedule. As millenials enter parenthood, they will influence this even further- it’s not that they are not overachievers, it’s just that they insist upon a more balanced life than their type A predecessors.


5) Are there any trends in other areas you'd like to highlight?

Korean food is going to be huge in 2012, gray is the color of the year as the world population gets older and work/life continues to blur (the gray area), and though localism will continue to dominate how we relate to each other and purchase everything from produce to home furnishings, bigger universal themes and conditions will pepper our thinking on a global scale as many around the world share a collective need to redefine “value”, as well as share anger on everything from politics to big business to Wall Street. As we’ve seen, the problems of the US are quickly becoming the problems of the world, and Europe in particular.

Website Spotlight: Mashalot

Have you heard of Mashalot? It's a social retail marketplace that allows businesses to promote products and services, while “Mashers” leverage their own social networks to save money on products and services. It's currently available in the greater Twin Cities metro area, with a planned national launch early March of 2012 at the South by Southwest Music and Media Conference in Austin, Texas.

Mashalot works by encouraging consumers or “Mashers” to use their social media influence to gain special pricing from participating Mashalot businesses. Transactions in the marketplace are called “Mashes." Mashes can be created by a business transaction that drives specific promotions, or with a consumer-driven price request from an individual or group of Mashers. Each Mashalot ad is available for five days and all promotions are pre-approved to meet Mashalot advertising guidelines.

Businesses are charged no upfront fee to participate in Mashalot and revenue for the company is 100% commission-based. Several local Twin Cities businesses have already signed up including Suburban Chevrolet in Eden Prairie, La Casita Mexican Restaurants and Lucky Dog Pet Lodge in Bloomington. Mashers may also request a “Mash Your Price” from non-participating businesses. Mashalot will then contact the requested business to negotiate the Mash.

Money Makers: Selling Gold

Lots of people are interested in gold these days. I recently interviewed Todd Hill of Pawngo, an online pawnshop (I didn't even know they existed!) about this trend:

1) I know you're not a fortune teller, but how long do you expect prices to be so high based on earlier trends?

Gold has a solid history of remaining a stable and highly valuable asset, even during times of economic uncertainty. The price of gold is affected by supply, demand and market speculation.

Since such a large quantity of gold is stored and produced annually, its price is driven more by demand than supply. Luckily for investors, gold supply is extremely stable compared to other precious metals and commodities.  

There’s a large global demand for this commodity among jewelry makers. And, besides its role in the production of luxury goods, gold is considered a highly sought-after investment for financially savvy individuals.

In recent years, investment demand has been the driving force behind the increased gold prices. Since gold is able to sustain its value, even in times of inflation and stormy economic climates, gold investment has sharply increased.

There will always be an instant market for gold because it’s fungible, stable, and has high liquidity. Some predict that the price of gold will drastically reduce once our economy is back on track. Others predict it will continue to rise. Regardless of how well the economy recovers in the long-term, gold will always be considered a smart investment that should be held onto as a form of financial insurance.

2) What are the advantages and disadvantages to pawning off gold items to raise money?

In my 25 years working in the pawn industry, I have seen people of all income levels pawn their gold when times are tough.
Since the launch of our online pawn shop, Pawngo.com, we have received more than 7,000 applications from people looking to pawn their valuables. Gold should be considered a form of financial insurance. Since it’s such a reliable asset, it can provide badly needed security if you find yourself in a true financial emergency. So, by all means, you should hold onto it for as long as possible.
If you’re caught in a financial bind, hold off on selling your gold. Instead, borrow against the value of your asset, or pawn it so you still have the financial security of gold 3 to 6 months from now, when your loan is paid off.
If you plan on pawning your gold, make sure you know its current spot price to ensure you’re receiving a fair offer. I’ve seen too many people get lowball offers because they haven’t done enough research on their own.

3) How does it work to use an Internet pawn site to sell gold?

The process is simple and convenient. To get started, you answer a few quick questions about your gold. Once you receive our initial offer, your asset gets shipped to our secure fulfillment center, fully insured and on us. Then, our team of certified evaluators inspects your gold and emails you a final offer. How much cash you get depends on the evaluation of your asset’s market value. Once you accept our final offer, we directly deposit money into your bank account.

4) How much gold does Pawngo take in, and what does it do with it all?

We take in as much gold as we can get! Our certified evaluators are great at authenticating precious metals and placing accurate estimates on all luxury items that are shipped to us.

All pawned and purchased items are stored at our secure fulfillment that is safeguarded with cutting edge biometric security. Our locked up luxury goods are also monitored by 32 separate cameras that run 24 hours a day with direct feeds to offsite recorders.

Final gold purchases are placed into our ecommerce store for resale. And, of course, all pawned items are safely stored for the entire duration of a customer’s loan period and returned once the loan is fully paid off.

Giveaway: MyPublisher Holiday Cards

I'm pleased to offer a $50 gift code to MyPublisher, an easy-to-use website to make personalized holiday cards (invitations, wedding, and baby announcements coming soon). What sets MyPublisher out from other card-making sites? Well, they boast more paper choices, better-quality envelopes and free liners, and free shipping! So the cards are really a great value since you're getting very good-quality cards at just around $1 each (currently holiday cards are on sale from $0.98 each flat, $1.12 folded). Plus, you can use multiple photos, and the designs they have are very classy. You can sort designs by color, too, so if you have the perfect photo and need a card to match, it's easy to find. The only downside is you're limited in size - 5x7 - but that's a pretty standard size so it's not much of a drawback.

Because Christmas is coming soon, this has a short turnaround time - the deadline is December 4th! To enter, leave a comment with how many holiday cards you typically send in a year.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary MyPublisher code to facilitate this review.

Healthy Habits: CO Safety

With windows shut up tightly for winter, the odds of carbon monoxide poisoning increase. Many states have laws requiring CO detectors, and it's a good plan. Unlike smoke from a fire, CO is odorless and easy to miss, especially when you're sleeping. Candace Lightner (from the movie "It's a Wonderful Life") and her family were nearly killed by accidental carbon monoxide poisoning years ago; Chicken Soup for the Soul: Count Your Blessings co-author Elizabeth Bryan also nearly lost her family. To read to accounts by Elizabeth Bryan, check out I Count My Blessings for First Alert or $15 to Save a Life.

Parenting Pointers: Pet Safety

I received some tips about pet safety during the holidays from Dr. Jessical Vogelsang (cool name, it means birdsong in German), small animal veterinarian and founder of Pawcurious.com, and wanted to pass them on to you:

1. Ensure you’re prepared if your pet gets out
· With all the holiday visitors and festivities, it’s easy for stressed pets to slip out the door or backyard. Be sure your pet has its tags and microchips updated with your current address and phone number.
· Consider a GPS product like Tagg – The Pet Tracker to calm your fears. Tagg attaches to your pet’s collar and will send you an alert if your pet does slip out, and then allows you to track your pet’s location in real time so you can pick him up and bring him home!
2. Be aware of holiday fragrances
· Candles are a fire and burn risk, of course. Many owners turn to scented potpourri, thinking it is a safer option, but it is extremely caustic when ingested and can cause esophageal ulcers.
3. Mind the string
· Cats love ribbons, string and tinsel. But when ingested, they can lead to a painful condition called "string foreign body" and can actually perforate the intestine.
4. Keep an eye on the holiday treats
· Although everyone knows chocolate is toxic, the most common reason pets wind up in the ER is because they ingested too much fatty food and gave themselves an upset stomach or pancreatitis. If you have a relative who insists on feeding the pet treats, keep a bowl of special pet-friendly holiday treats nearby and ask them to feed your pet those instead of pieces of sausage!
5. Know where the emergency vet is located
· If your pet has an emergency, you can't call 911. The last thing you want to have to do in that situation is look up directions to the vet clinic when you're stressed and in a hurry! Know their phone number and map out the location ahead of time.

Evenflo: New Bottles for Nursing Moms

Evenflo has a new line of bottles designed for nursing moms who need to switch back and forth between nursing and bottle-feeding. The Bebek collection is a line of bottles, nipples, pacifiers and accessories that are all created to feel more like Mom. Unique to the collection is a silicone Proflow™ nipple that rapidly and continuously vents, releasing air bubbles into the bottle, instead of baby’s tummy - significantly reducing gas, fussiness and colic. This soft, wide-base nipple also provides an easier latch for baby when transitioning from breast to bottle. With a modern, ergonomic design and shape, the bottles (available in 2oz, 5oz and 8oz sizes) are also comfortable for parents and baby to hold. Plus, the design (I think) looks really modern and cute! The Bebek collection is available at Buy Buy Baby and BuyBuyBaby.com.

Fun Freetime: Chuggington App

If you have a kid who's a fan of Chuggington and an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch, check out Chuggington: Terrific Trainee. This app, available for $1.99, has 16 kid-friendly missions where kids earn bronze, silver, and gold badges for their accomplishments. Designed for preschoolers, a simple press or swipe of the finger activates various moves, including jump, speed boost, grow, fly, switch tracks to avoid obstacles, load/unload deliveries, make pickups and more.

Healthy Habits: Locating Medical Care

Emergency Medical Center Locator (EMCL) iPhone app, was developed by Dr. Bruce W. Moskowitz, M.D., P.L., and is a free app that helps you quickly located the nearest specialty medical center. It uses patient outcomes to direct people to medical centers based on six specialties - Trauma, Stroke, Eye, Pediatric, Cardiac and Burn. It's free, so it's worth downloading - especially if you're frequently on the go outside of your local area!

Freebies!

Tote bag from USA Harvest