Super Markers Set with 100 Unique Marker Colors

Rating: 9 out of 10

My entire life, I have only colored with crayons. My mother taught me how: outline the part you are coloring slightly darker, and then fill in that section. I've always enjoyed doing it that way.

My son has never felt that way. He didn't enjoy coloring very much when he was younger, and now he is happy to use either colored pencils or markers.

My son has always enjoyed drawing his own photos more than coloring. But as he's gotten older, he appreciates the relaxation of coloring more.

He is so creative. And just look at the differences in the colors, and the brightness of them.

This set is incredible. Every color is different, which is just amazing to me. I didn't think there would be that much variety.

I just love selecting the colors. I colored this mandala, and I didn't use a single color twice. I believe I used about 60 colors. (I should have kept count!)

They are just gorgeous colors. The only reason I rated them a 9 and not a 10 is because they do not have different color names on the markers themselves, or even different numbers. I would like a way to keep track of the ones I liked best.

Also, they have a great storage rack. Each marker has a place, and it works really well.

I received these markers for free in exchange for my honest and unbiased review. And they are amazing.  You can see my amazon review here: https://www.amazon.com/review/R2NMYM1BVF2UZ6/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

Red Wine Decanter by Bella Vino

Rating: 5 out of 10

My first decanter!

I really enjoyed using a decanter. I found it to be much more elegant than drinking out of the bottle, and I did find it to be a much different taste than when I just pour wine right out of the bottle.

This decanter is a beautiful, modern design. I really like the large bell shape at the bottom, and the neck is very striking. However, the lip design is not correct for pouring. At least, I could not do anything to keep it from dripping. There was always one drop on the lip after I poured it out. Since I used to pour wine for a living, this really surprised me. I am pretty sure my skills are not that rusty!

The first wine we tried in the decanter was a red house blend. We decided that we should try it both before and after being decanted. The initial taste was absolutely horrible! I could not believe how awful this wine was. It had a sharp tanginess that really overpowered the wine. After sitting in the decanter for one hour, the wine was actually drinkable! I mean, it still wasn't a great wine. But that nasty aftertaste was gone. I'm not sure if it was because of the aeration of pouring it into the decanter, or letting it "breath" in the decanter, or some combination, but it was well worth waiting an hour. Honestly, if this wine had not been in the decanter, I may have dumped it out and given up completely.

The second wine we tried was three buck Chuck. Yes, a lovely Charles Shaw Shiraz. I actually really like this wine; it is a very simple wine, without a lot of complex flavors. It goes well with just about anything you may be eating. (I don't remember what we ate, but I'm sure it paired well with it.) There was less of a difference in flavor here, but the decanter really did mellow out the flavor. I really preferred the wine after it was decanted, although my dinner companion did not, and felt that something was missing.

All in all, I really love using the decanter. Despite it's flaw, I will continue to use it because of how much it improves the taste of the wine. I will just make sure to have a towel handy to wipe up that one lone drop after every pour! I received this product for free in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Betty's Pies in Two Harbors

Rating: 9 out of 10

When we arrived at the Voyageur Motel in Two Harbors, there was a menu for Betty's Pies on the wall. I have heard of Betty's Pies my whole life, but had never been there. In fact I didn't even realize it was in Two Harbors. Gigi asked, "Are you looking for breakfast or pie?" And of course, our answer was enthusiastically, "Both!" Gigi recommended both Betty's Pies and Vanilla Bean. Well, we were there for two mornings, so we were able to try both.

We were very excited the next morning. Betty's Pies is just a short drive north on Highway 61 from the motel, and we arrived very quickly.

The breakfast was good, but not great. It was a very basic diner-style breakfast of eggs and hashbrowns. It was good though, and reasonably priced.

But, of course, the star of the show was the pie. So many selections of pie! We had a lot of difficulty narrowing our selection down to two slices. We did agree that one slice of pie per person should be more than enough! But hey, you can see the list. It's easier said than done to narrow it down!

In the end, we decided on Raspberry Rhubarb and Toffee. The Raspberry Rhubarb was absolutely amazing. I love any pie with a crunch topping, and easily could have ordered (and enjoyed) all three of those! In fact, I was so excited about it, I accidentally took a bite before I took a photo!

But really, how could I resist?

The second piece of pie we chose was the Toffee, which was also amazing. It was very creamy, and also very light. There was just the right amount of toffee flavor, not overwhelming and not overshadowed by the creaminess.

Of course, I wish I had been able to to have all of the other kinds of pies. I will definitely need to go back to Betty's Pies soon!

101 Chocolate Vegan Recipes by Sam Kuma

Rating: 8 out of 10

When I saw the title of this cookbook, I was excited. Although I don't personally identify as vegan, I do avoid dairy because it doesn't sit well with me (to put it nicely). And nearly every chocolate recipe has milk in it, or some form of dairy. I've even seen sour cream! Well, of course I can go buy vegan sour cream or milk and try to substitute, but it doesn't always work out. Sometimes, soy milk is NOT the same as milk! They just don't always behave the same, and it really depends on the recipe.

When I find vegan dessert recipes, they are often not chocolate. I do love chocolate, and I don't see anything wrong with eating it now and again. But I prefer to have less sugar, and of course, no dairy. It doesn't seem like that much to ask, but it can be very difficult to find. 

The first recipe I chose to review was the first recipe in the book: Chocolate Chia Smoothie Pudding. I have never heard of anything referred to as a smoothie pudding, and I was intrigued. The recipe described it as being similar to an ice-cream shake, and I think that's a good description. I should tell you that my husband and I are not fans of chia seeds, even though we know they are healthy for us. I have to say that this is a great way to get them into your diet if you are looking to -- they aren't noticeable at all in the smoothie. I didn't care too much for having this served over ice cubes (made from almond milk) but it just didn't seem to go with the texture. I may make this again, and skip the ice cube scenario. I found this to be very good, but it was so thick. On the plus side, it was very filling!

The second recipe I made from this cookbook was #22: Three Ingredient Brownies. I was extremely skeptical of this recipe. The three ingredients are bananas, almond butter, and cocoa powder. I was pretty sure that there was no possibility of those three ingredients turning into a brownie! Well, I was both right and wrong. I made the puree in the food processor, and then prepared to bake it. The recipe just called for a "baking pan," so I wasn't sure what to do! I used a 9x9 glass baking pan, and it seemed to be the correct size. While I was transferring the mix, I did try a little bit off of the scraper and it was amazing. I thought if nothing else, we could just eat it uncooked! The other part of this recipe that wasn't quite correct was the timing. We had to cook it for at least 5 minutes longer before it set. But it did set! I was quite surprised. I mean, I wouldn't quite call this a "brownie," but it was very delicious. It actually reminded me of a no-bake recipe: very smooth and creamy. I would definitely make these again.

 I'm looking forward to trying more recipes from this cookbook, especially Thin Chocolate Crepes, Vegan Chocolate Waffles (it has been VERY difficult for us to find a vegan waffle recipe we like), and Chocolate Covered Popcorns. 

I received this product for free in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Voyageur Motel in Two Harbors

Rating: 8 out of 10

At 3pm on Friday, June 3, I was sitting on my sectional couch, searching the computer for the best place to stay in Two Harbors that night. I live about 2.5 to 3 hours away, but there was supposed to be heavy rain, which might slow things down. I was starting to get concerned that we wouldn't be there in time for dinner; we may have to eat dinner on the way. I was considering that maybe we should just pack the car and then drive up first thing in the morning. So I started searching for Saturday night only, which wasn't much better.

Then, I stumbled on a little place called the Voyageur Motel. I don't know how it ended up coming up in my search. They didn't even have a website, just a phone number listed. So, I called. The owner answered and told me that they had just had a cancellation and had a room open for both Friday and Saturday. I booked it right away, which surprised my husband!

I'm so glad we did. It was my first time in Two Harbors, and we had a fantastic time. The owner, Gigi, was very friendly and helpful to us. She recommended that we eat at the Vanilla Bean, which was a lot of fun and delicious. She was also flexible about our arrival time, which was nice.

The Voyageur Motel is a small, 8 unit motel conveniently located on 7th Avenue, which is the main road through town. It's location is very convenient, and very close to the scenic drive that goes to Duluth, which we enjoyed. Wifi and a pretty extensive cable selection are available, which are both important to me and sometimes lacking in a smaller motel. There is also complimentary coffee available at 5am, but we did not avail ourselves of it! I'm not much of a coffee drinker, and my husband isn't much of a morning person.

I would stay at the Voyageur Motel again. It was nice, clean, and reasonably priced. The rooms are very small, fitting a bed, chair, and small desk/table. The TV is mounted on the wall, and there is only a shower in the bathroom. (I'm not sure if this layout is true of all units. We stayed in unit 2.) If you are going to Two Harbors and looking for a reasonably priced place to stay, the Voyageur Motel is a good choice.

Carmody 61 in Two Harbors

Rating: 9 out of 10

We chose the Carmody 61 for the illustrious reason that it was very close to our hotel, and we were able to walk to it. Even though it was pouring rain, we were excited to be able to stretch our legs after the long drive to Two Harbors from our home. 

When we walked in, we had to choose between two doors: restaurant, or bar. We chose restaurant and were greeted with another sign: Please Seat Yourself. We were brought menus and drinks right away. The service was very quick and attentive, with the exception of taking over 15 minutes to pay! We also noticed immediately that there was mustard on the table (a big plus!) and not one, but two veggie burgers on the menu.

Spent Grain Burger: Made from spent grain from their own brewery. It was very unique, and one of the best veggie burgers I've ever had. It had very unique toppings too: whole mustard aioli, lettuce, red onion, tomato, and giardiniera. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about that combo, but it was amazing. 

Black Bean Burger: The black bean burger was very good. It had guacamole on it, which I love. 

We also had the appetizer of "curly fries," which were delicious, but not at all what I was expecting. Apparently curly fries are now like seasoned steak fries in the shape of a circle. I like them, but I was expecting something thinner. 

We had a really great time at the Carmody 61. They had a large selection of tap beers, probably about a dozen, and a good variety. The food was fast and delicious. I will definitely be back the next time I'm in Two Harbors!

Premium Bartender Kit in a Luxury Bag

Rating: 7 out of 10

This set comes with a martini shaker, jigger, and 2 liquid pourers. You can also receive an ebook called "100 Cocktail Drinks Recipes." In order to receive the ebook, you do have to sign up at their website and provide your email.

https://www.amazon.com/Cocktail-Shaker-Premium-Bartender-Luxury/dp/B01C0RCOHM/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

I love to travel with my martini fixins. One time, I was going to Green Bay for the weekend (Go Pack Go!) and staying with a friend of my mother's. Her only request was that we make martinis, because everyone talks about how wonderful our dirty vodka martinis are! Well, that was quite an ordeal, because we had to pack a shaker, all the glasses, olives (several kinds, of course) and the alcohol. It took up a full size paper box. 

Anyway, we decided to have happy hour as soon as we arrived on Friday night. It was so much fun! The only problem we had is that we could not make them consistently. The taste entirely depended on who was making them. Mine are quite good, but I just can't seem to recreate it when I measure. We tried to measure, but nothing helped. 

Having a jigger really helps with this. The jigger that comes with this set is not a standard size, it is 1/2 ounce and 1 ounce, as opposed to the traditional 3/4 ounce and 1 1/2 ounce. It works well enough to keep track of proportions, so it isn't really an issue. 

Using our new jigger, we have determined that our dirty vodka martini recipe is 3 ounces vodka, 1 ounce vermouth, and a whole lot of olive juice. (The olive juice kind of varies based on personal preference!) It's pretty exciting to be able to have an actual recipe, so I really appreciate that. I love being able to make them consistently!

I also really enjoy having the pouring attachment to use on the bottles. I used to work in a bar and really got used to having pourers, so I'm enjoying having them again. 

I'm very excited to take this set traveling with me! I love the black velvet bag that it comes in, and everything fits really well in it. It's such a great idea to have a set for traveling. 

This product was received free for my honest and unbiased review.