Strange Daze Indeed

The basic function of credit cards is to give you access to a limited amount of credit, which you can spend and then pay back when your monthly bills comes in. However, if you compare credit cards available at the moment, you’ll find that many offer so much more than this. So, if you only have a standard credit card and you want to get more from your spending, you might want to read on.

Common credit card perks

The following are just a few of the perks, benefits and bonuses offered by rewards credit cards currently on the market:

    •    Cashback. This is one of the most widely available credit card perks, and it can also be considered one of the best. It works by giving you a pre-agreed percentage in cashback on your spending. The amount you will get may vary from retailer to retailer, so you might get 1% on groceries and 2% on fuel, for example. Cashback is a great perk, as you can earn money back simply by doing your normal spending, which automatically makes all of your purchases cheaper. 

    •    Loyalty points. Rather than giving you cashback, some rewards cards allow you to collect loyalty points on your spending. These points can then be used at certain stores, and most of the big credit card companies have hundreds to choose from. This is essentially the same as cashback, expect that you have slightly less freedom in where to use your rewards.

    •    Travel rewards. Credit cards offering travel rewards usually give you points every time you spend, which can then be turned into everything from frequent flyer miles to complimentary hotel nights and upgrades.

    •    Discounts at certain retailers. Some credit cards offer you a percentage discount for using your credit card at a particular retailer, or a chain of stores owned by the same retailer. These discounts can be quite impressive, but you should go for these credit card perks if you actually shop at the store regularly and can use the discount.

    •    Support for a charity or favorite organization. For those who want to give a little something back, there are credit cards which help you to support your favorite charity, organization or school as you spend. For example, when you make a purchase on your credit card, a percentage of what you spend might be put towards supporting your children’s school, a chosen charity or a local sports team.  

We’re having a heat wave. Although I love the warm weather, I hate the mugginess. It’s so important to stay hydrated on days like this. Luckily for me, I recently got to sample Rooibee Red Tea because it’s one of my new favorite Summer finds! And because Rooibee is naturally caffeine free I can drink as much of it as I’d like without worrying about being wired or not being able to sleep.

I’m a tea afficionado and I adore iced tea. I drink it winter, spring, summer and fall.  It’s interesting how different blends have such different tastes and since I love the earthy taste of Rooibos tea in general, these iced tea blends are ideal, tea-riffic even.

I’m always on the lookout for natural products and Rooibee Red is the only bottled  USDA-certified organic rooibos red tea on the market and the only bottled organic red tea made from the South African rooibos bush.

For generations, South African families have known red tea made from this bush to be high in antioxidants, calming and rejuvenating. This was the feeling I got from the tea, not a caffeine-type of buzz but a natural sense of well-being. It’s also gluten free and low in calories, unlike my favorite coffeehouse beverages.

Founded in Louisville, Ky in 2009 and now a certified Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) company, Rooibee Red Tea believes in creating delicious healthy drinks for the whole family, in providing wellbeing for the body, soul and planet as well.

Rooibee Red Tea comes in 5 flavors:

First of all, Unsweetened for the purist. I enjoyed this one with a slice of lemon and a mint leaf.  The tea itself has an inherent sweet character, but it’s really not too sweet.

Next, the Vanilla Chai. I found this one to be different, not my favorite, but if you like chai, I really think you will enjoy it.

Third is the Peach. This is delicious and the fruit flavors blend and balance really well. Again, nothing artificial or too sweet. Just right in my estimation.

I really liked the Cranberry Pomegranate because of the subtle berry taste. All of the flavors are not overpowering, but just lightly balance and blend with the rooibos tea. I love the scent of this one.

And, now, Watermelon Mint. This is one of my favorite summer finds that I will be drinking a lot of.  If I were to create a tea, this is probably what I would envision. I am really crazy about this! It has just the right blend of watermelon with a mint finish. I could seriously drink this all day. The flavors are so incredibly refreshing.

So, if you’re looking for a healthier alternative and a delicious iced tea, why not try Rooibee Red Tea.

You can find Rooibee in Whole Foods, Kroger stores and other grocery chains and independent retailers. Here is a store locator.

You can also stay in touch with Rooibee by following them on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

Disclosure: I was provided samples to facilitate this review, however, all opinions are completely my own.

But seriously…

The LeapPad2 Explorer is the Winner of the 2013 Educational Toy of the Year and People’s Choice award for toys and now GradSave is having a fabulous giveaway where you can win one.

The sooner our children begin learning, the stronger the foundation for the future.

 It takes about a minute to enter on Facebook, right here.

Official Rules

Wishing everyone lots of luck and lots of fun learning!

Warner Bros. is proud to announce the arrival of Jack the Giant Slayer released on DVD & Blu-ray on June 18!
 
Unleashed on the Earth for the first time in centuries, the giants strive to reclaim the land they once lost, forcing Jack (Nicholas Hoult), into the battle of this life to stop them. Fighting for a kingdom, its people, and the love of a brave princess, he comes face to face with the unstoppable warriors he thought only existed in legend… and he gets the chance to become a legend himself!  Directed by Brian Singer (X-Men, Superman Returns)

Starring: Nicholas Hoult (About a Boy), Ewan McGregor (Star Wars, Moulin Rouge!), and Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones).



Are you courageous enough to rescue the princess? Are you brave like Jack?  Take the quiz to find out!

 Win:

Enter to win a Jack the Giant Slayer Combo Pack (Blu-ray + DVD + Ultraviolet (open to US and Canada)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure:  The assets included within this message were delivered by Warner Bros. who I am working with. They will be providing the prize to the winner.

Welcome to the 2nd annual Summer Solstice Giveaway Hop hosted by MamaNYC!

We’re going to kick off summer with a bang, so break out your summer clothes, boogie boards and beach balls. It’s time to celebrate the season with a giveaway hop!

This event begins on June 21st and will run until June 30th at 11:59PM (est). Have fun as you hop down the linky list for many more chances to win from other cool bloggers! Good luck and Happy Summer!

Here at Strange Daze Indeed, I thought it would be nice to have you pick out whatever you’d like by giving you a $25 gift card to Walmart! I am always popping in there and they have just about everything. It can also be used online at Walmart.com if you’re not that close to one.

This is a plastic Walmart gc not an eGift card.

You can use a Walmart plastic Gift Card at:

• Walmart.com 
• Any Walmart store
• Walmart gas stations
• Sam’s Club stores
• Samsclub.com

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Cascade. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.

I care about my dishes. I use a dishwasher for convenience, but it’s really important to me that my glasses and dishes are free of water spots, grease and other undesirables. This has not always been the case which has caused me to end up re-washing them by hand. What a pain that is.

I recently got a chance to try out the new Cascade Platinum gel pacs. The first thing I noticed was the scent, citrusy fresh like sweet lemons. They are also extremely cool looking, like a piece of abstract art, and come in gel pacs that are easy to pop into the dishwasher. But, of course, when you come down to it, it’s all about the results.

So, how did they do?

They did amazingly well, working on both the inside of the dishwasher and on my dishes, which, to me, seemed very clean and sparkling. Best of all, I didn’t have to re-wash them whether we had had lasagna, fish or nachos. No greasy plates, no leftover smells, and glasses without water spots.

In summertime, we often have guests over and eat outside on the patio. In the sunlight, you can see everything, so this couldn’t have come at a better time.

I also do food presentations so it’s very important to me for everything to be clean. After all, as it’s so often said, we eat with our eyes first. I had the good fortune to work as a lunch chef at a spa for a few years and found it to be creative and incredibly enjoyable. I definitely wouldn’t serve anything on a plate that wasn’t as clean as possible.  Having realized that with Cascade Platinum I can have more sparkling dishes, it’s on my grocery list for sure.

Cascade has partnered with Top Chef judge and Food+Wine magazine editor, Gail Simmons to discuss food presentation and plating. Check out this video for tips:

Cascade has an awesome contest going on right now. So many people are uploading food pics lately to Twitter, Facebook and Instagram that this fits right in!

The Cascade “My Platinum” contest is a four week Instagram contest encouraging fans to upload photos related to the weekly themes. Join in and show off your sparkle!

You can visit the contest landing page to learn more and enter. Each week, two contestants will win a brand new Whirlpool dishwasher while one grand prize winner will win the ultimate Platinum kitchen makeover! That’s something I dream about.


Each week  Instagram users can enter the contest with their #MyPlatinum Photo. Cascade will choose winners after the entry period has ended. Please be sure to include both the #MyPlatinum hashtag and tag @MyCascade in your entries!

You can find the Cascade Platinum gel pacs in Fresh and Lemon Burst scents at grocery and retailers nationwide.  You can also check out Cascade on Facebook to keep up with the latest news and promotions.

Happy Father’s Day everyone! If you’re looking for a great gift for today or any day,  EatSmart recently  launched a new addition,  the EatSmart Precision Tracker Digital Bathroom Scale.

Weight is such an odd thing. It can affect our health, our sense of self, our ability to do all the things we’d like — and summer is the time when I usually look more closely at mine. After all, summer is just around the corner meaning swimsuits, shorts, sundresses and sandals and I want to look my best. But, not just that, I want to feel my best so that I can do all the fun things I want to. I find that the better I eat and the more water I drink, the better I feel. Losing weight and looking good is an added benefit.

This new scale that I have been reviewing has made the process of keeping my weight in check more fun and more enjoyable. I can track my progress and that makes it like a game almost. Let’s see if what I eat and the amount I exercise can really affect my weight. Now, I’m not one to keep notebooks with tables of figures, so what I really like is that you can very simply program this scale at the touch of a button (up to 8 users). From then on, each subsequent weigh in will be measured against this starting point. (I put a sticker on the bottom of the scale with the date I started). 

After each use, the scale will display three readings: current weight, weight change from the last weigh in, and total change from the starting weight. This is great motivation and helps me find the best diet and exercise strategies for my lifestyle. I’m not one to be overly weight-conscious so I allow myself splurges with friends, and it’s really interesting to see how they affect my weight. When I’m keeping a healthy diet with lots of veggies and water, I can really see the change and it makes me want to keep going to reach my goals. When I exercise or slack off, I see the changes. Your numbers are personal, private, and the scale does the tracking for you.

This scale also looks really cool. It’s super thin, sleek, modern and elegant – and on top of that, it works great. It has a large LCD display with a white backlight making it easy to read, even at night with the lights off. It doesn’t take up much space and it really adds to the decor.  I love that it’s so user-friendly. Seriously user-friendly. 

A few tips:

Don’t drive yourself crazy weighing yourself every minute (unless you want to!). It’s normal for your weight to fluctuate during the day and from one day to the next (even from a simple glass of water). 

Do weigh yourself at the same time of day if possible for the most accurate results, preferably when you wake up in the morning.

Give yourself a break! Stress can add to your weight. As long as you have a long-term goal and stick to it, a few slips won’t destroy it unless you let them.

 I love this scale the most of any I’ve ever had for style and function! I love that I can track my progress. I highly recommend this scale for anyone who wants to get a good read on their weight in the short and long term.

EatSmart has offered one of my readers the chance to win one of these awesome scales. So, please enter via Rafflecopter below. 

To Your Health!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclosure: I was sent the above scale in order to facilitate my review, however, all opinions are strictly my own. 

 

When I got my first cell phone, I didn’t know enough about cases to buy a really effective one, but when I bought my iPhone, I did a lot of research. I feel much more secure now and am not so worried about the mishaps these phones we love always seem to encounter.

If you’re looking for a great protection solution, Best Buy has a fantastic selection of iPhone cases and, now that summer is around the corner, these cases are even more important for protecting your favorite mobile device. Just imagine all the possibilities! From sand at the beach to getting caught in an unexpected summer rain, our cell phones still have to perform in any environment. Don’t be like me and decide to wait until your phone is already ruined.

I hate the thought of missing the perfect photo as well since I’ve discovered Instagram! Summer is one of my favorite times to take pictures and share them.

In winter and fall, it’s so much easier for phones to hide away in pockets or purses, but in summer, they are accessories for your bathing suits, skirts and shorts. Brands like Mophie have created iPhone cases that are not only great for protection, but also keep you stylin’. Right now, Best Buy is having an exclusive offer of 10% off select Mophie iPhone cases for a limited time.

I really love the look of these cases and knowing that my phone is protected so that I won’t miss that all important text or find myself with my phone not working when I need it most. Check it out! Mophie gives you great protection, power and style. Happy Summer all!

Disclosure: The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.