CLOSED ~ Quick giveaway!! Win a Wooden Spoon from Tuttorosso & JKAA!

So last week I shared the Tuttorosso Wooden Spoon Giveaway that they are running on FB, remember? Today they asked if I'd like to give one of you that same prize! Of course I said yes !  :)

So this will be a super easy, quick giveaway.  First you need to enter the official giveaway on the FB page, then come back here and leave a comment saying you did so.  Please include your email address in the comment so that I can reach you if your comment is the winning entry!  I will pick one comment to
win a wooden spoon from Tuttorosso here on the blog!

Contest closes on November 5th at 12:01 am.  Open to US & Canada.  Prize will be mailed to you directly from the sponsor!

Super Stocking Stuffer!

Just found these on Amazon and ordered a few for stocking stuffers!  Love that they don't require batteries, and are small enough to keep in the car, purse or gym bag! They were only $1.90 each and they shipped for FREE! Click the link to go directly to Amazon... (they come in several colors besides blue, but this was the cheapest one when I ordered!)

Blue 3 LED Hand Press No Battery Wind up Crank Camping Outdoor Flashlight Light Torch

Meatball Hero Casserole Recipe

I've written before about my son, aka Mr. Picky Pants.  He doesn't eat meat unless it is chicken or turkey.  He will look at the package to be sure I'm not trying to trick him into eating beef!  Silly boy.  So anyway, when I cook, I often have to change things up to work for his palate.  He will eat sliced turkey on sandwiches, but not ground turkey.  He will eat ground chicken though!

A few weeks ago a friend shared an amazing looking casserole on Facebook.  It was a deconstructed meatball sub/Hero casserole - yuuuuuuummmmmmm!   I immediately went to work planning my strategy so we could try this too!

First, I decided to replace the bag of frozen meatballs with some homemade chicken meatballs.  I bought a package of ground chicken, and mixed it with some Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs, a little grated parmesan cheese, an egg, ketchup, mustard, a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce, and some Italian seasoning.  I shaped the mixture into meatballs and sauteed them in olive oil on the stovetop til brown.

While they were cooking,  I sliced a loaf of crusty french bread, buttered it and added some garlic powder and Italian seasoning to the top.

Next,  I added a jar of Spaghetti sauce into the pan with the cooked meatballs and brought to a nice simmer.  Starting to smell amazing in here....

To assemble the casserole, I placed the slices of bread around the edges of a medium-sized baking dish (please excuse the condition of my baking dish - I made it at a pottery place when David was a baby, and even though it's starting to show cracks in the glaze in places and the paint is chipping off the sides, I can't stop using it! I love that dish!!)  and spooned the meatballs and sauce into the middle.  Then I sprinkled some grated cheese over the top and placed in the oven til the bread was done and the cheese was nice and melted!

This was so good!  Yes, Mr. Picky Pants loved it, too! We'll be enjoying this several more times throughout the Fall - it's a perfect meal for a chilly night!

So while this isn't a recipe, per se,  I hope it will serve as inspiration to you!  Make your favorite meatballs, use your favorite sauce and customize this to your family's taste! I'm thinking of trying it soon with buttered Texas toast half-slices and BBQ sauce in with the meatballs for a BBQ chicken meatball sandwich casserole!

Let me know in the comments how you like this recipe, and what changes you will make to make this casserole for your family!

Enjoy!

Tuttorosso Wooden Spoon Giveaway

Tuttorosso will be giving away 3,000 wooden spoons over the next three weeks starting Oct. 22nd at   -- to celebrate the nostalgia and heritage of the wooden spoon in so many classic tomato-based recipes (chili, soup, lasagna, manicotti, salsa, etc.).

As you may know, or perhaps have experienced, wooden spoons are often handed down from generation to generation -- and are the preferred tool by professional chefs since they are soft, won't scratch, don't remove heat out of sensitive recipes and have a high heat tolerance.

Anyone can get in on the wooden spoon random drawings by 'liking' Tuttorosso on Facebook and providing some contact information.

(3,000 spoons will be given away over three weeks, as well as a grand prize of one Tuttorosso personalized heirloom wooden spoon and a 6-piece signature cookware by La Creuset).

As company background, the family-owned Red Gold company (which makes the Tuttorosso brand -- ) has been around since the 1940s focused on growing local in the Midwest where true seasons impact the flavor of tomatoes. The Midwest, while it's cold in the winter, has the perfect growing season for tomatoes, perfect angle of the sun, perfect temps -- and even the winter is perfect for tomatoes, as it breaks up the soil for tiny root systems. Few places in the world can you grow such tomatoes.

Do you have a special wooden spoon that's been passed down through your family?  Share your story in the comments below!!   Want a chance to win a wooden spoon from Tuttorosso? Hurry over to the FB page and enter to win!!

LOVE my new Walking Dead Visa Debit Card!

This month I was offered the opportunity to review a prepaid Visa debit card from www.card.com.   I have seen debit cards like this, but never tried one for myself, so I was very excited to check it out. 

First, I went to the website and choose my card.  So yeah, that was difficult!  They have *every* design you can imagine! Seriously!!  I adore Gordon Ramsey, and they even had Hell's Kitchen card designs!  I had the toughest time narrowing it down, but finally I picked one from The Walking Dead.  I LOVE that show, and the skyline of my favorite city was on it, too, so that's what I picked!  (After all, this is Just Kidding Around Atlanta!)

Not a zombie fan? That's ok - they have you covered!  There are cards for breast cancer awareness, autism awareness, Shark Week, kittens, puppies, Garfield, Star Trek, camo, Nascar, steampunk, cityscapes and more!  It is crazy how many fun designs they have!  

I filled out the short application on their website (no credit check needed) and within a week, the card arrived in my mailbox.  I used my card both locally and online; it was as easy as using the debit card from my bank!  I especially liked using it for my online purchases, since there is only a limited amount of money available on the card.  

Here is more information from the good folks at www.card.com:

“This is a debit card, like the one from your bank, and you can use it EVERYWHERE Visa is accepted -- except it's way cooler and cuter than your crummy old bank card!

• Free to order, activate and load
• Free app and check deposits from your smartphone
• Free direct deposit
• Free card-to-card transfers, any time, anywhere, in seconds
• No overdraft fees -- never goes negative!
• Safer than cash - 24/7 support, Visa fraud protection and 100% FDIC insurance on funds
• No debt, financially responsible, no interest/credit/APRs
• No credit check and approval in seconds
• 22,000 in-network ATMs
• Thousands of cool, unique card designs to choose from, including brands like: Garfield, Popeye, Bettie Paige, James Dean, Care Bears, Walking Dead, Star Trek, Autism Awareness, Breast Cancer Research, Shark Week, Where's Waldo, Doodle Jump, Three Stooges, Nancy Drew, etc.

This card is not a gift card.  You can’t give or receive the card as a gift. But it's better than a gift card ~  you don't just use it once and toss it, but instead get to replace your boring bank-issued debit card and show it off over and over.  

The card is free for 30 days - then there is a $5.95 monthly fee. That fee is waived when you direct deposit over $800 in the previous 30 days.  This fee is the same as the Walmart prepaid card and way less than many competitors charge. It's also much less than overdrafting your bank account, paying for a checking account or using a credit card.”

I found the entire process to be simple and straightforward - the website walks you through everything. I've really enjoyed this fun Walking Dead card from www.card.com.  A few cashiers have remarked how much they liked my Walking Dead card!  

The interactions I've had with the website & staff have been wonderful too - very helpful and kind folks!   I highly recommend this card if you're looking for a debit card provider.  I think it would be PERFECT if you have a child in college - you can load the money on and they will have to learn to budget! But if they don't do well, you are protected - no overdraft fees!

I love that they even have downloadable apps that let you check your balance and much more, for both iPhones and Androids.  You can even deposit checks via your smartphone - how awesome is that?! 

Find card.com on Facebook & Twitter

Would love to hear in a comment below which card you would choose!

Disclosure: www.card.com provided me with $25 on the card of my choice to try their service.  All opinions given in this review are my own!

Giveaway ~ Warner Bros. Spook-Tacular Halloween DVD!

Who's up for a spooky Halloween giveaway?!  One winner will receive one of the following Spook-Tacular DVDs from Warner Bros.! 

 (Prize will be chosen randomly by the sponsor from the titles below!)

• Scooby-Doo! 13 Spooky Tales: Run for your Rife!

• Regular Show – Fright Pack (V4)

• It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition

• Tom and Jerry: Tricks and Treats

• Bugs Bunny’s Howl-oween

• Scooby-Doo and the Goblin King

• Tom and Jerry: Halloween Hijinks

• Sesame Street: Elmo Says Boo!

• Adventure Time – Jake the Dad (V5)

What is the best part about Halloween?

The pumpkin carving? The costumes? The free candy? All are amazing, but whether you are the bunch that loves dressing up and scaring the neighbors or you plan to stay-in, Warner Bros. has a line-up of Spook-Tacular Movies to get you in the holiday spirit. From classics like It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown & Scooby-Doo The Goblin King to Adventure Time – Jake the Dad, you can count on a spook-tacular selection that the entire family can enjoy!

Before you and the kids take the neighborhood by storm, get in the mood by sharing some spooky stories!

• Which Spooky Family Are You? QUIZ - Is your family all about the candy and costumes? Or are you pumpkin-carving crazy? Take the quiz to find out which spooky family YOU are!

• Spook-Tacular Story Time PDF - It's simple... Halloween is not Halloween without spooky story time! Print out a copy for everyone, sit in a circle, and have everyone craft their own spooky story!

Enter via the Rafflecopter widget below....good luck!

CLOSED ~ Giveaway ~ Pacific Rim Blu-Ray!

Go BIG or go EXTINCT!

Directed by Guillermo del Toro, Pacific Rim is an epic science fiction film set in the 2020s. Earth is at war with Kaijus; colossal monsters from an inter-dimensional gateway on the Pacific Ocean floor. Humanity unites to fight these huge monsters by creating the Jaegers: gigantic humanoid robots that are controlled by two pilots whose minds and memories are linked. The story takes place in the later days of the war, following Raleigh Becket, a former Jaeger pilot called out of retirement and paired up with newbie pilot Mako Mori in a final effort to defeat the Kaijus!

Pacific Rim is released on Blu-ray & DVD Oct.15!
Check out the interactive Blog App:



Pacific Rim: CONTROLLABLE GIFs - Move & click your mouse across the GIFs to control the Giant Kaiju and Massive Jaegers!

Pacific Rim SUPERFAN QUIZ - How do your movie smarts stack up? Do you consider yourself to be a movie superfan? Take the quiz to find out!

Pacific Rim SOUNDBOARD - Pacific Rim features epic battles between the Jaegers and Kaiju! Play with SFX from the movie, create your own battle clashes, and save mankind from the apocalypse!

Enter this contest by using the Rafflecopter Widget below! Good luck!

CLOSED ~ Giveaway ~ I'm In Love With A Church Girl movie tix!

Time for another giveaway ~ enter below to win two movie tickets!!

Have you ever had a crush that changed EVERYTHING?

Miles Montego has it all. Including a past, but when Miles meets Vanessa Leon, a woman who is different than every other woman he’s met, he is drawn to her beauty and her faith. Increasingly, he is torn between a life that he knows and a love that he feels. As Vanessa experiences his lavish lifestyle, mobster-type friends, and encounters with past women, Vanessa must reconcile her faith in God and her growing love for Miles.

I’M IN LOVE WITH A CHURCH GIRL is a powerful, inspiring story of a love between a man and a woman, a gift of second chances, and a family at home and in church that never stops praying and believing.

I’m in Love With a Church Girl opens in theaters October 18.

I'm in Love with a Church Girl CAST:

Jeff "Ja Rule" Atkins

Adrienne Bailon

Stephen Baldwin

Michael Madsen

TobyMac

Contest ends 10/20/13, and is open to US & Canadian residents!  Enter through the rafflecopter widget below!