Can I Have Some Cheese With My Whine?

Ok, ok, I know this blog is normally about beauty products, subscription boxes, etc., but today I just need to vent  a little. If you mind, just don't read this.

This will probably seem trivial to some because I know that overall I have a great life: a husband that loves me, kids that do well in school and in general, a secure job in a high school library, a nice house, nobody is sick. However, I have not been on a vacation in 4 years! I love to travel but it has just not happened for me in the past few years. One main reason is that my husband and I raise Rottweilers and for the past 3 years we have had puppies and they require almost constant care. I love the dogs and cannot imagine life without them, but dang, I just need to get away for even a few days.

Now my husband, on the other hand, has been on several trips and has more planned. In fact, right now he is on his way to Michigan (I've never been to Michigan) to a dog show and will be gone for 6 days. I can't go on this trip because someone has to stay and take care of the dogs he didn't take. In 2 weeks he is going to Germany (I've ALWAYS wanted to go to Germany even when I was a little girl) however, I'm not going to be able to go because he planned this trip to leave on the 2nd day of school. I have a new job at a high school and there is no way my principal will let me leave for 10 days right after the school year has begun! I tried explaining this to my husband when he planned this, but he said he HAD to go then because that's when the International Rottweiler show is. Also, he's been to the Smokey Mountains earlier in the summer (dog show) and to South Carolina (on the coast) last fall (dog show). I'm getting pretty tired of this! I want to go somewhere!!!!!

I'm thinking of planning my own trip and letting HIM stay home and take care of the dogs! Any suggestions on where I could go by myself and still have a good time; I do have a fall break coming up in October....

I Tried to Stop

About 2 months ago I decided that I had tired of blogging, subscription boxes, the whole nine yards. I do have a short attention span. And when I made this decision it was during the last month of school and everything was quite hectic. But try as I might, I still found myself looking at Popsugar and Sample Society reviews on other people's blogs. I tried to tell myself that those really weren't things I needed or wanted (like that worked). So here I am blogging away waiting on my next Popsugar box. Unfortunately, when I decided to renew my subscription it was too late for the August box so I am going to have to impatiently wait for the September Popsugar box. It does say that I'm on a waiting list so if they have some August boxes open up I may get one. If you are thinking about subscribing to Popsugar, be sure to use the code REFER5 to get $5 off your first order.

To celebrate my return to blogging, I am giving away a surprise box of health and beauty stuff. Click here to enter (begins on 7/16/2013):

Surprise Box Giveaway

Giveaway! Big Surprise Box!

**WINNER CHOSEN!**
Susie King, you are the winner!

Want a surprise box full of health and beauty goodies? Well, here you go!

Use the Rafflecopter below to enter. One lucky winner will be mailed a big box full of stuff!

*Added* If this contest reaches 500 entries, I will include a $30 Charm and Chain GC! Share this contest with your friends!!!

The ARV of the prize including the Charm and Chain GC will be $80!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out more great contests at www.contestheat.com

Book and Beauty Cravebox Giveaway!

It's time for another giveaway! This time Cravebox has provided me with two Book and Beauty Craveboxes to giveaway. One box is going to a local blog reader and the other box will be given away here to one lucky reader!

Click below to view the contents of the Book and Beauty Cravebox:

Book and Beauty Cravebox

Use the Rafflecopter below to enter.

Good luck!

Cravebox is a product discovery service. You can purchase different themed boxes for $12-$16. Cravebox is not a subscription service, as you can pick and choose which boxes you want. To sign up for Cravebox, click HERE. If you do join Cravebox, please use me as your refferal: rebeccamarietta@gmail.com

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Popsugar Must Have Codes April 2013

I have had several asking if there are any Popsugar Must Have money saving codes and here are the ones I've found:

REFER5 $5 off sitewide 

SAVE5PSMH $5 off any POPSUGAR Must Have Box subscription

GET25 $25 off a 6-month subscription to POPSUGAR's Must Have Box

GET10  $10 off a 3-month subscription to POPSUGAR's Must Have Box

I just saw this morning that they have come out with a new Must Have Summer Edition for Him box in limited quantities. This box costs $100 and so far I haven't seen any spoilers. I chose not to get the Men's Luxury box back in the winter, and I'm glad because my man wouldn't have liked very much that was in the box. The box from the winter has mixed reviews, so I probably won't order this new men's box. 

I did choose to order the Special Edition Summer Fun box (which is now sold out) and I am excited about it, especially since I got an email saying that the boxes would include a pair of Nicole Richie House of Harlow 1960 sunglasses. These retail for around $128 and the cost of the entire box was $100, so I know there will be some real value inside. 

If you want to buy a Popsugar Must Have Box, sign up here and remember to use one of the codes above!

Cooking Light Fast Meals Cravebox

Some of you may be asking, just what exactly is a Cravebox? Cravebox is a discovery service that helps you learn about cool new products and the great thing is that every box I have received is full of great values. I have yet to pay for a box that wasn't worth more than the amount I paid (usually $10-$16). If you like what you see below, head on over to Cravebox and check out what they have. This is not a subscription service because you get to pick and choose which boxes you receive. There are several instant boxes you can order right now that will be shipped shortly after you order. If you do order, I would appreciate you using me as your referral. Just put rebeccamarietta@gmail.com in the referral box. 

I have been really looking forward to the Cooking Light Fast Meals Cravebox. I had a feeling that it would be packed full of tasty goodies and I was right! When I opened my Cravebox, it was brimming over with awesome products. In fact I had to rearrange several times to get everything in the photo:

Oddly enough, I ran out of stevia for my coffee yesterday morning and thought I was going to have to go buy more at the store. Wrong! Inside this Cravebox was a box of Pure Via  and a box of Equal along with some great recipes to use with them. The Pure Via got used this morning.

I used this next product last night while grilling. There were two seasonings from McCormick - Southwestern and Moroccan. We love Southwestern at my house so this will be put to much use. I will have to study about the Moroccan seasoning more because this is new to me. If you have any recipes or ways to use this, feel free to leave it in the comments! 

Southwestern chicken on the grill last night:

There were several snacks included. I'm so glad they chose to throw in some Fig Newtons because that is one dessert I will allow myself to have in limited quantities. There were also some Zone Perfect Bars and Popchips.

Stash Herbal Tea Sampler, 18 count. I will pass this on to someone because I don't drink hot tea, but I'm sure it's very tasty if you like tea!

Finally lots, and I mean LOTS of coupons! There are even two coupons for FREE Triscuits.

This was a great box and I'm really happy with everything I found inside. Another great thing about Cravebox is that they send out boxes with full-sized products along with samples and coupons for the same price as other boxes that only include samples. You definitely get your money's worth with Cravebox!

Popsugar Must Have April 2013

First off, let me say that this April box has gotten some less than stellar reviews on the web. While this may not have been Popsugar's most awesome box, it by far was not terrible in my opinion. It is common for people to jump on the bandwagon bashing a company when they see others doing the same. Popsugar continually provides customers with a box filled with products that are worth well over the $35 box price. No, you will not get everything you love every time, but no one can deny that the value well exceeds the cost. If there are things that I am not crazy about, I have enough friends and family that someone will love what I don't!

Now that my ranting is over, on to the April 2013 Popsugar Must Have Box!

Here is what I found when I opened the box:

My favorite item in the box was definitely the Kai Perfume Oil. I already had a sample of this from another box and was thrilled to get a full sized bottle. It is in a little roller bottle, so it is super easy to apply and I absolutely love the smell! I normally don't really like floral scents to wear, but this smells like fresh spring flowers and it not overpowering. It is a fragrance oil, so it will last for a long time. It retails for $48.

Ummm, chocolate. Can you go wrong with chocolate? Not in my book! Popsugar included an Alter Ego Dark Quinoa Chocolate bar with light crispy crunch. Delicious? Yes! And it's 100% organic and fair trade certified so you feel good about buying the product. You can buy this chocolate bar for about $4.

I love jewelry, so I was excited to see a bracelet. The Shashi New Nugget Bracelet is very pretty on my arm, however, the bracelet is now on my 13 year old daughter's arm. It is brown and turquoise with gold "nuggets". This bracelet retails for $30.

Here in the humid South, my skin gets very oily in the summer so these Petal Fresh Evening Aburatorigame blotting papers from Tatcha will come in quite handy. They are the perfect size to keep in my purse or beach bag and they work very well. Popsugar included these in a previous box, but who cares? They work and they are needed for me! Perhaps those complaining about getting them again need to come stay with me for a few weeks in July when it is 100 degrees with 90% humidity. These sell for $15 in a pack of 40 sheets.

Finally, we will get to the most controversial item in this month's box. The dreaded Green Garmento garment bag with a Popsugar logo. How dare they? (said with more than a hint of sarcasm). This is not a glamorous product but it is a useful product. I can think of many uses, the main one being trips to the dry cleaner. I plan on traveling this summer, so I can also use this bag to keep my clothes clean. Also, on the bottom of this bag is a drawstring so you can turn it upside down and use it for a laundry bag.  Once I looked at this product's website, I remembered seeing this bag on Shark Tank. How cool! I love that show! This bag can be bought for about $10. Oh, and I am glad it has the Popsugar logo! I love Popsugar and don't mind at all having their logo on my stuff.

Want your own Popsugar Must Have Box? Sign up for May's box by clicking here.