Mom Knows Everything

Being a mother often means for lunch we end up eating whatever we make for our children to eat. A lot of times that means a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Who has time to make something different for us to eat? Well the people at Black & Decker Home and the Applica Canada Corporation can help you do just that. With their range of toaster and convection ovens you can make a wonderful lunch, or even dinner, quick and easy. Being a parent means you don't have much time for anything so quick and easy is exactly what you are looking for.

I recently got the chance to try out the Black & Decker Convection Stainless Steel Countertop Oven and I am absolutely in love with it. It features -

- Convection feature
- Perfect Broil Technology
- 6 slice capacity
- Fits a 12 inch pizza
- 60 minute auto-off timer with stay on option
- 1500W Quartz Heater Performance
- Non-stick interior with removable crumb tray
- Automatic rack advance
- Reversible chrome-plated wire rack with two rack positions
- Heating elements guards
- Includes baking tray and broiler pan
- 2 Year warranty

The Black & Decker Convection Stainless Steel Countertop Oven is so amazing not only can you make sandwiches with it, but you can cook so many other things including meat, frozen snack foods, pizza, rolls, cookies, baked potatoes, and basically anything you would cook in an oven. I've cooked a small chicken in it, Pillsbury cinnamon rolls, frozen pizza, and sandwiches in it and I've haven't had it a week yet. It's so handy and cooks so quickly that it might just replace my oven and microwave for me.

Speaking of sandwiches I wanted to share with you a quick and easy sandwich I made with my Black & Decker Convection Stainless Steel Countertop Oven that was not only quick and easy, but it was delicious and I used leftovers to make it.


To make a BBQ Pork Melt simply thinly slice pork, layer them on bun, cover with BBQ sauce, mozzarella cheese, and sliced onions. Place in your Black & Decker Convection Oven and toast for 5 minutes at 350 degrees. This makes a great sandwich and you can even use whatever leftover meat you have. You could make a BBQ Roast Melt, a BBQ Chicken Melt, or a BBQ Steak Melt.

You can purchase this Black & Decker Convection Stainless Steel Countertop Oven or any of their other great ovens at many retail stores including Wal-Mart and online at Amazon.

Applica Canada Corporation is the exclusive licensee of Black & Decker® Home. You can find out more information about Black & Decker Home and their product line by going to their website.


The product in this review was given to me free of charge. My review and opinions are not influenced by this or any source, they are my honest opinion of the product. No other form of compensation has been given. I am not responsible for the statements made by the sponsoring companies or it's affiliates. Click here for my disclosure policy.

Halloween is quickly approaching. What do your children want to dress up for this Halloween? Whether they want to be a ghost, a pirate, of the latest super action hero, Halloween costumes can be very expensive.

I haven't bought a Halloween costume in almost 8 years, instead I make them myself. Here are some of the ones I've made in the past few years.









All of these costumes costs less than $10 to make each and with many of them I recycled stuff I had around the house to make. If you are worried that they may be too difficult for you to make your own costume then don't be. There are lots of articles online about making homemade Halloween costumes and you can even sew them by hand like I do.

Save yourself some money this Halloween and make your child's Halloween costume yourself.

When we were little girls we wished we were a princess. Now as a mother we wished we had a Fairy Godmother. With so many things to do during the day, taking care of our children, working, and keeping house we all wish we had someone to grant us a wish.

Being a mother means your day is filled with cleaning up chocolate finger prints off the wall, driving kids to soccer practice, making supper, doing load after load of laundry, helping with homework, making supper, and that's only the afternoon! Because moms work so hard and are so busy taking care of everything and everyone else they tend to forget to take care of themselves. I wish I could grant all mothers out there a wish, but unfortunately I'm not a Fairy Godmother, but I do know one, or atleast I know a Fairy Hobmother.

The Fairy Hobmother recently visited me and granted me a wish by giving me a $50 Amazon.com gift card and if you tell me what you wish for and what you would do with a $50 Amazon.com gift card The Fairy Hobmother might just visit you too! Perhaps you would use it on books or Christmas gifts? Then you could have some extra money to put towards bigger things you may need, such as appliances. If you need appliances, appliances online sell freezers and other appliances and they have great deals so you could save even more.

Tell me what you wish for and what you would use the $50 Amazon gift card for.

If you have been anywhere near a store lately you'll have noticed that they are full with Halloween costumes, decorations, and candy. I recently received an email with some great tips fromDr. Margaret Mitchell, owner of Mitchell Dental Spa.

- Examine your child’s candy before he or she digs in to see if it meets your approval.

- It is okay for your child to eat any candy that you approve of, but to help lessen the chance for tooth decay, have them brush as soon as possible after eating the candy. By brushing right after candy consumption, the impact of the candy on the teeth is minimal.

- Avoid sticky candy such as taffy, gummy bears, caramel, etc. Sticky Candy adheres to teeth and leads to decay.

- Despite popular belief Kids can eat candy ANYTIME, there is not a good time of day/night to eat candy.

- Prior to Halloween, visit your dentist to have sealants put into the child’s teeth grooves. This protects tooth enamel against corrosion caused by excess sugar.

If brushing soon after eating is not possible, then try the following:

- Consume the candy with a meal. The increased saliva production while eating will help wash the sweet off the teeth.

- Rinse the mouth with water.

- Chew a sugarless gum (especially those containing xylitol) after snacking on candy. The increased saliva from chewing will help wash the sugar off the teeth and xylitol gums help control the bacteria that cause tooth decay.

- Eat the candy quickly in one sitting to decrease the amount of time it is contact with the teeth. Avoid eating any candy slowly over an extended time or over multiple sittings. Recent studies have shown that length of time eating a sweet can be more harmful than the amount of sweet consumed. This means hard candies, breath mints, etc. (long residence time in the mouth) can actually be worse for your teeth than a chocolate candy bar (shorter residence time in the mouth).

- Avoid sugary sodas. They are loaded with sugar (often over 10 teaspoons per 12 ounce serving), are acidic enough to dissolve away tooth enamel and are often sipped for long periods of time, resulting in teeth that are being bathed with sugar and acid almost continuously throughout the day.

We all love taking pictures of our kids and what a better way than making a scrap book of these precious memories. There is a great contest going on over at Misty's Musings, My Dogs Keep Me Sane where she's giving away a My Memories Suite 2.o digital scrapbook. To find out how to enter simply click the link.

The school year has begun and that means school pictures are close at hand. Having a school photo of your child is important, but don't feel obligated to buy the largest package they offer. School photos are very expensive and in this economic time money is tight. What I do is buy one of the smaller packages and then some time during the school year I take a few pictures of my child at school. These pictures can be of your child sitting at his desk, in front of the school, or simply playing on the playground. The I put the pictures on my HP computer and use online free editing tools to make them look the way I want them to. I them either print them out at home or go to a picture kiosk and print them out. This way I get the pictures they take at school and I get to choose from the ones I took the ones I like the best.

With the cooler weather upon us I've been doing a lot of knitting hats, mittens, scarves, and sweaters, but sometimes I get tired of using the same old patterns over and over again. I was recently checking out Michaels the craft stores website for some yarn and I noticed they have a huge section on projects. These projects includes not only knitting patterns, but also other craft patterns as well. And the best thing of all is that they are all free!

If you are looking for a pattern or some craft ideas then check out Michaels.com free projects.

Looking for something fun to do with your kids this weekend? One of my daughters favorite things to do when she was little was going on a treasure hunt. Don't worry you don't need one of those metal detectors garrett for this type of treasure hunt, but if you had one it sure would make it much more interesting.

To plan a treasure hunt all you really need is a box, some treasure (small toys, chocolate coins, etc.), a map, and some imagination. Make a treasure with a box and whatever you wish to put in it and hid it. You can hid it outside or inside. Them you need to make a map for your kids to follow. You can make it as easy or as complicated as you wish. With my daughter we had a small metal box shaped like a treasure chest. We hid it outside and drew a map on a yellowed piece of paper. To yellow the paper you can either purchase a piece or simply dip it in tea and allow it to dry. You can roll it up like a real treasure map.

Your kids will have a great time searching for treasure and will be ecstatic when they find it.

It's apple time and Life Made Delicious have 10 Fresh Apple Recipes to share with you. They have everything from Caramel Apple Crisp to Oven-Fried Pork Cutlets with Apple Slaw.

This weekend take your family to an apple orchid and pick some apples. When you're done you can make some of these delicious recipes. I'm definitely making the Caramel Apple Crisp this weekend!

You have your arms full of groceries, you have a dog yapping at the door, you hear the phone ringing, and you have a child at your feet saying they have to go to the bathroom. Sounds familiar doesn't it. With your hands full what do you do? Of course you use your foot to kick the bottom of the door open. Sure the door gets opened and your groceries are still in your hands and not all over the floor, but you scuffed the bottom of your door.

You're not the only one who does this, your husband does it and your kids do it too. It's a bad habit that can not only cause scuff marks on your door, but also damage your door. Installing door kick plates is the perfect solution to this problem. Not only are they easy to install, but they also add to the look of your door.

I hate it when I am in the middle of playing with the kids, washing dishes, or preparing dinner and the phone rings. I can't stand the sound of the phone ringing, so I rush to it only to discover that it is a number I don't recognize. Many times the number is one that I don't recognize, but repeatedly calls anyway without leaving a message.

Recently, I had a friend tell me that I could stop these numbers from calling me without having to worry about answering the phone to figure out who it is. That's right. I don't have to hear aggressive sales pitches from telemarketers or telefundraisers to get them to stop calling. In fact, all I have to do is enter the number in to a reverse phone lookup service online.

Although most phones come with Caller-ID these days, unless you have a number already programmed into your phone, the name of the person or company calling you won't show up. I usually won't answer a call from a number unless I know who it is. I don't see any reason to waste the minutes I pay for on a caller I don't know, and I'm definitely not going to risk wasting 20 minutes on a relentless telemarketer.

With reverse phone look up, I can literally type the number in and immediately get a person or business' name and address for free. Then I am able to go to the company's direct website to put myself on the no-call list, or shoot an email to the Better Business Bureau telling them what a nightmare this company is.

I've also been able to use this service for prank calls too. While prank calling is mainly a thing of the past thanks to Caller-ID, kids will still be kids. We had a few nights in a row where a few of my daughter's classmates were repeatedly calling after 10 PM and hanging up each time. We didn't know who was doing it at the time, but were able to put their number into a phone number look up service and figure it out. After one call to parents, the calls ended.

Overall, knowledge is power. We rely on our phones for quite a bit these days, and if our time is being abused by unsolicited callers, then we have a right to put an end to it. I know I have been happier since I stopped getting unsolicited calls. Now, I can play with my kids or do the dishes without pesky telemarketers interrupting my time.

It's time to start decorating for Fall. One thing my family does every year is make a scarecrow. Not only is it really easy to do, but it's also a great fun family activity.

To make your very own scarecrow all you need is some old clothes, I used my son's old clothes he outgrew, white material, rope, stuffing, and two sticks. To make the form of the scarecrow make a cross with two sticks. Dress the scarecrow with the old clothes and stuff. I used old plastic grocery bags as stuffing. For the head of the scarecrow I used some white material and stuffed it into a ball. Tie the head onto the scarecrow and draw on the face. Viola, you have a scarecrow. Since we used my son's old clothes my children decided to name our scarecrow after my son.

Having fun with your family is just as important as taking care of them. If your looking for car insurance uk check out LV, LV also offers life insurance cover for your family.

Unfortunately there are some dishonest people in the world and sometimes these people try to scam you. In the past there was telephone scams where people tried to get your credit card information, and then there was email scams where they try to get your banking information. Now the latest scam that's going around is a combination of both telephone and computer scam. People call you and tell you they are from a certain computer security company and that there is something wrong with your computer. They then get you to give them control over your computer and they steal all your information. Now you don't have to be a computer expert or have one of those Webmaster Jobs to know that something isn't right when someone you don't know out of the blue calls you about your computer.

My theory when someone calls or emails you about something that you haven't contacted them about them ignore them or you can tell them to take you off their list, but asking them to take you off their list sometimes doesn't work. I find either ignoring them or saying no and hanging up eventually gives them the message that you are not going to fall for their scam.

If you are unsure about a phone call or an email you can always do some research about them. Googling is a great way to find out experiences other people had with them and if they are legit or not. Don't fall for scams.

Now that Fall is here it's time to start decorating. No not for Christmas, which is right around the corner, but decorating for Fall. Putting up some Fall decorations can make your home not only pretty, but cozy as well.

One simple thing you can do for Fall decorating is by hanging up a Fall wreath. You can either by one or make one yourself. To make one all you need is a grapevine wreath, a hot glue gun, and some Fall themed decorations such as leaves, acorn, ribbon, etc. You can purchase all these things at a Dollar Store. Not only is it inexpensive to make one, but you can get your children to help as well and it's a fun family craft to do together.

As parents we all want to keep our children safe. September is Baby Safety Month and in an effort to reduce the nearly 2.5 million home injuries, a company called UL, world leader in advancing safety, has developed the following easy steps to keep children safe:


1. Inspect your home from baby's point of view
2. Eliminate small toys & other objects
3. Install self-closing outlet covers
4. Lock toilet lids
5. Shop for a safe crib & purchase a flame-retardant mattresses - When purchasing a crib, make sure there is no more than 2 3/8 inches between slats; corner posts do not extend more than 1/16 of an inch above the end panels; and headboards and footboards do not contain cutout areas.

Our children are the most important things to us and with these quick and easy tips we can help keep them safer. For more information about keeping your family safe at home go to www.SafetyAtHome.com.

I love getting baby and bridal shower invitations. Showers are always fun! It's a great time hanging out with the girls, playing shower games, and eating lots of great food. At the last shower I was at one of the sweets was a blueberry square and there were so amazing that I had to get the recipe for it.

Blueberry Squares
Filling -
3 cups blueberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
4 tsp cornstarch mixed mixed in 2 tbsp water

Bring blueberries, sugar and 1/3 cup water to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Whisk the cornstarch and the 2tbsp water together and add to the blueberry mixture. Bring to a boil and constantly stir until thickened. Place plastic wrap directly on top of mixture and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Crust -
2 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 1/4 cups four
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup butter

Combine all ingredients and blend with fork until it looks like a coarse crumbs. Place half the mixture in pan and press down. Spread blueberry mixture on top, and then sprinkle the rest of the mixture on top. Bake for 45 minutes at 350. Let cool in refrigerator.

When it comes to shopping for men it can be a long process. What to buy is always a problem. Sure you can always buy tools, but how many wrenches does one man need? Instead of giving your husband a tie, that he's probably never going to wear, or some tool that he already has three of you could give him something a little different. Things like Sharis Berries, which are hand dipped strawberries covered in chocolate aren't just for women, men love them too! When it comes to gift giving for men think outside the box. Surprise your husband with something unique and something they wouldn't buy for themselves because isn't that what gift giving is all about.