Well, today I decided that it was a 2 cups of the Espresso Blend of Lavazza KCups kind of day.  My free boxes of Lavazza came just in time. (Thanks for sending me 2 free boxes in exchange for my honest review, Lavazza!)

After a late night at a hockey game (which my team LOST) I was already super tired this morning.  Add to that papers to grade, lessons to plan, students to teach, and a full-blown headache.  I HAD to reach for the good stuff!  So far I have never had any better coffee brewed at home (or in this case, school) than this Lavazza kind!

These Lavazza KCups are seriously my favorite KCups I have tried so far (and I have tried quite a few, if I do say so myself.  I don't know what it is about this kind of coffee, but the flavor is so robust and delicious (I mix mine with powdered sugar-free vanilla creamer) that I could not just have one cup today!  This tastes like some real, gourmet stuff, here!  I am no coffee connoisseur, so I can't explain what it is that makes this coffee so delicious, but, please believe me….it IS!

I have passed out a few of the magnets and coupons (both for in-store and online use) to some fellow teachers at school, so I hope they do themselves a favor and buy some of these for themselves.  It is going to be hard for me to share, but I will, since Lavazza was so generous by sending me 2 boxes for free.

I am the "coffee keeper" at my school, so people know they can always come to me when they need a KCup for our KCup brewer that we keep in the teacher's lounge.  I will be sure to recommend Lavazza, and I may even share a KCup or 2 with as many of them as possible (if I am not too tempted to keep it all for myself!)

As you can tell, I would highly recommend the Lavazza brand to any coffee drinker.

My husband's experience with Copper Sole socks

These socks ROCK!  I am a big fan of good socks, and these are the hands down BEST socks I have ever worn.  NO JOKE!  Prior to this campaign (where I got 3 free pairs of Copper Sole socks free from the Copper Sole company through BzzAgent) I had never heard of these socks.

I am a police officer and I need good socks!  Especially in winter time.  I have a feeling that these will really keep my feet warm in the winter.

ALso, I am a bit embarrassed to admit it, but I tend to get athlete's foot a lot.  I oftentimes work out in the weight room at the police station and sometimes forget to wear my flip flops in the shower.  Seems like whenever I do, it never fails, I get athlete's foot.  I haven't worn these socks long enough (about the 4 weeks it takes) to see if it will "cure" my athlete's foot, but I will be sure to BzzAgain on the status of it!  As a matter of fact, I have a minor case of it right now (BUMMER).

I wear them at home, at work, and while working out.  Like I said, it is very important for me to have good socks.

Ever since I have started using it my wife hasn't nagged me about getting odor eaters for my stinky feet, so I guess that they really do help with foot odor!

I give these socks an A+, 100%, 5 star rating!  If you know what's good for your feet, you will go online and order some for yourself….your feet will be THANKING YOU!

Secret Outlast Clear Gel (with update 11-6-14)

I was excited to try this Secret Outlast Completely Clean Clear Gel that I got free from Secret through BzzAgent.  I have been disappointed in its inability to stop me from sweating, though.
It really does keep my clothes stain-free (no white marks), but, like EVERY deodorant/antiperspirant I have ever tried, it falls short in not making my have sweaty armpits.
That is not to say that I treat my deodorant nicely….I mean, I push my sweating to the limits.  I took 3-year-old twins to Yo Gabba Gabba Live, worked out, did an oral presentation for my grad school class, etc. under the care of secret.  All of those things made me super-sweaty.
I have to say, i was kind of disappointed when I received my BzzKit and saw that this was a GEL.  I mean, who wants to put wet stuff on their pits?!?!  The directions said to apply 2-3 "clicks" to each underarm.  I find that I need to use 4 clicks on the first armpit (from settling or something?) and only 1 on the second armpit.  Weird, but true.  The gel takes a while to dry, but, when it does, it really leaves no marks.
The scent is fresh and clean.  It is a little strong, but I like that.  I haven't had body odor since using it, but, like I mentioned, i still do sweat….a LOT.



UPDATE 11-6-14

I hate to say it, but, this antiperspirant is simply not working for me.  I still sweat.  Not enough to where people can see it through my shirt or something, but enough for me to feel wet under my armpits.  I was hopeful that this would work well to keep my dry, because, as mentioned above, this is the only deodorant that truly goes on clear and doesn't show up on my black shirts, but it just doesn't work well to keep my dry.  I am sure it works better than if i were to not wear any deodorant, but it doesn't keep my dry like I need to.

I am still liking the scent, and it really does work well to cover odors.

I would love to hear if this Secret Outlast works well for others.  If you use it, drop me a line and let me know how this works for you.  Like I said, i really wanted it to keep my dry, but, sadly, it just doesn't.

Fekkai Brilliant Glossing Shampoo, Conditioner, and Glossing Cream

I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.  My review and opinions are my own.

The items pictured above were in my Influenster Vox Box.  I was super excited to get to try these products, as I know that they are salon-quality (and salon priced) products.

I was a little disappointed in the size of the shampoo and conditioner samples.  I mean, I literally used as little as possible of both and barely squeezed enough out of there to last 2 shampoos and conditioners.  I could have easily used each sample in one use.  I feel as though I didn't get a true feel of the difference the shampoo and conditioner could have made in my hair after longer use (I would have liked to have had enough to use for at least a week or two.  I wish that the shampoo and conditioner samples would have been the same size as the styler (2 oz bottle), but instead they were 0.3 oz packets.

Shampoo and Conditioner:
Anyways, I guess I shouldn't complain about a free sample, but, like I said, I find it difficult to give a great review of the products when I got barely anything to try.  What I did notice about the shampoo was that it was WAY thicker than any other shampoo that I have used.  I feel like it really coated my hair.  I loved the scent, and I like that fact that is was infused with olive oil.  The conditioner was much "runnier" than the shampoo.  I really didn't notice any difference in this than the Tresemme conditioner I was using before I tried these out.  Again, i really loved the scent of this.  I did notice that my hair was "glossier", but that may be due to the styler (which I will review next).  I can not be sure if the glossy shine of my hair had anything to do with the shampoo or conditioner because I used all 3 products each of the 2 days I used the shampoo and conditioner.

Styler:
This was interesting.  After putting it in my hair, my hands were sparkly.  Like, this product actually has super-duper fine glitter in it almost that makes your hair shiny!  Now, this does NOT mean that it looks like you are putting glitter in your hair or anything, but it is just what makes it look shinier.  I LOVE this product.  I will continue to use it until I have squeezed every last bit out of the bottle!  My hair felt super soft and STRAIGHT!  (This is the look I want….I blow dry my hair straight every time I wash it.)  Again, i LOVE the scent.  
It says right on the bottle that a little goes a long way, so this product will last you a very long time.  I seriously use, like, a pencil eraser (the kind on the end of the pencil) sized amount….maybe even less) each day.  By the end of the day, my hair does feel a little greasy, but no more so than when I use any other styler out there…..and I have used about a bazillion different kinds, ranging from the cheapo brands to the salon-priced/quality ones!

On the two days that I used all 3 of the above products I had not 1 but 4 people ask me if I got a haircut or did something different with my hair!  No one said "Wow, your hair sure looks glossy" or anything, but these products made enough of a difference for my hair that that many people noticed something was different---and that says something!

I only wish that I would have saved the shampoo and conditioner for school picture day (which is coming up--I am a teacher!)

5 Hour Energy

Link to smiley360 5 hour energy mission page

I NEEDED 5 Hour Energy today!  I took my twin 3 year olds to Yo Gabba Gabba Live in the middle of the afternoon (meaning NO NAP TODAY!)

A friend of mine went with me, so I took the 2 free 5 Hour Energy drinks that I got from the brand (5 Hour Energy) for free through Smiley360 and we both had one on the way to the theater where the show was.

We were both pleased with the pink lemonade flavor.  The drink did not make us feel full at all.  Plus, my friend really appreciated the fact that a percentage of the profits from specially marked bottles goes toward breast cancer research.

I can't honestly say that I felt any more energized than a large pop or coffee (with caffeine) would have given me, but my friend said that she really felt energized.

As mentioned, we both liked that fact that we didn't feel full after drinking the bottle.  A coffee or pop would have made (at least me) feel super full, or bloated, whatever you want to call it.

Overall, I would recommend 5 Hour Energy to anyone who wants the same results as a big pop or coffee without having to consume that much.  It helped my friend and I get through a long day with 2 very "busy" 3 year olds, and being surrounded by hundreds more!

Link to Oragel Coupon

Click here for a link to Smiley360/Oragel coupon:
http://h5.sml360.com/-/atmm

oragel coupon

Children's Advil (Sugar Free, Dye Free)

I have twin 3 year olds, and the youngest (ok, youngest by 3 minutes) always seems to get sick (fevers, aches, pains, etc.) to the point where he requires medicine. I really don't like the idea of having to give my kids medicine, but, when your child feels miserable you sure aren't going to just make them suffer!
That is why I am glad I got to try Children's Advil Sugar-Free Dye Free. Advil sent me a free bottle (through Smiley360) in exchange for my honest review of the product. It makes me feel good giving my kid(s) something that isn't laden with sugar or dyes. My boy (the one that gets sick more often) actually LOVES the flavor of this and always wants to "drink" it. (So, thank heavens for the childproof lid!)
This stuff starts working right away, and it truly lasts a long time (WAY longer than other types of fever reducers). The box said that it lasts up to 8 hours, and I believe it. Oftentimes I only have to give it one time and don't have to worry about when I can give the next dose. It comes with a measuring cup on top of the lid that you can have your child drink from. I choose, however to use a syringe that I got from the pharmacy. It is just way easier for me to squirt it in my kids' mouths rather than have them drink it out of that small cup.
I really recommend this product. It work well, is free of sugars and dyes, and has a taste kids can handle!

Tazo Chai Tea

Tazo sent me some free Chai teabags to try as well as 3 coupons for a FREE box of Tazo Chai Tea.  If you want one of the coupons, let me know!  One is for me and the other 2 are for me to share with friends.

I am so glad that Smiley360 hooked me up with Tazo Chai Tea.  I do love chai tea, although I have only had it at Starbucks and have never tried making it at home.

In my Smiley Mission Kit I got regular chai, vanilla caramel chai, and chocolate chai.  I decided to try the chocoloate kind first, especially since I didn't even know such a flavor of chai existed.

Here is a picture of my Smiley Kit and of the tea after I brewed it.  (I just ran some water through my Keurig and put the teabag in there so I wouldn't have to try to hunt for my tea kettle).

The directions say to let the tea steep for, like, 5 minutes, but, by the time I got to it (I was busy making a rubric and doing other school work) it was way longer than 5 minutes.  It tasted good, but I wish that I had some kind of milk or cream or something to put in it so it would really taste like the kind you get at somewhere like Starbucks.  But, seeing as though I never usually add anything to tea I make at home, I am used to tea with nothing in it.

I honestly can't say that I could taste any chocolate flavor, but at the same time, it didn't taste like regular tea or anything.  It was good.

I will write more after I try the other 2 flavors.  Then I will be able to decide what kind I will get when I redeem my coupon!