Category / grocery

by Kelly Mattei

A Great Gift for Mother’s Day or Graduation

A great gift for Mother’s Day or Graduation.

I cannot possibly be the only person in the world who sometimes has to return items I have purchased. Sometimes, things don’t fit, or I’m disappointed with the quality of a product, and sometimes, I have several things to return at once. This happened to me yesterday. I had several pairs of shoes to return to a local store…three boxes. It’s difficult to juggle three shoe boxes walking into a retail establishment, so I used my trusted Hulken bag. (Amazon shopping link here.) It’s a tote bag (medium or large) on wheels! And it’s easy to use! Plus it folds! Y’all know I have mentioned the Hulken bag before for college move-in and move-out, but it occurred to me yesterday that the Hulken is the perfect Mother’s Day gift or Graduation gift! Every woman on the planet could use a Hulken bag to help return items, for grocery shopping, for bringing things to and from the car, for moving, for spring cleaning, for college laundry…seriously, I use mine all the time. Their slogan says it all: Schlepping made easy.

I have the medium Hulken bag that I purchased through Amazon, and my college student daughter has the large. The medium sells for $89,90, and the large sells for $104.90. The bags are offered in three colors: black, rose gold, and silver. They have smooth-rolling wheels that go in all directions, and they each carry up to 66 pounds! The handles are long and reinforced…one on each side for rolling the bag next to you, and one on the end for pulling the bag along. Plus, an added bonus is that they are lightweight and easy to fold and unfold, so they take up minimal space in your home or car. I only have one right now, but I’m getting myself another one, so I can keep one in the house and one in my car. You never know when you’ll need it! I normally recommend products, but I’m absolutely insisting you purchase a Hulken bag for the mom or graduate in your life.

You see the silver bags above. Black and rose gold are pictured below. You can purchase all colors and both sizes from Amazon here, but order now, because right now, they are estimating delivery between May 12 and May 17. The longer you wait, the later the delivery. Mother’s Day is May 14, so there is a chance you will receive it before the actual date. Mine arrived earlier than estimated, so fingers crossed. But if you’re purchasing a graduation gift, order now too, to ensure it arrives in time!

I simply cannot stress enough how much I love this product. This is a gift they will actually use!

***Shopping link: Hulken bag

by Kelly Mattei

Tasty Junk Food Finds

Tasty junk food finds.

I’m not normally a Walmart shopper. I don’t handle crowded stores well. I’m more of a Publix kind of girl.

However, today my daughter texted me from school that she needs something in particular for her school spirit week wear tomorrow. I’m all about spirit week, because I remember how much fun it was when I was in school. It’s especially fun for the students at her school, because they have a stricter dress code than we had in school. When they have an opportunity to dress for comfort, they do it. In fact, today is pajama day, and you can bet your sweet bippy she took full advantage of that. In fact, I surprised her by taking her a smoothie for lunch, and when she met me to get it, she said, “It’s amazing how much better I can concentrate in school when I’m comfortable in my clothes.” I get it, but you can’t wear pajamas to school every day.

So after I dropped off the smoothie, I went to Walmart…just for her.

I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m one of those people who can’t just walk in and buy one thing. I guess it’s my attention deficit disorder, but things catch my eye, and I have to investigate…and well, one thing leads to another.

Today, after I had the item I needed, I walked past the frozen foods and saw the ice cream aisle. Because Walmart is known for having “exclusive” ice cream treats, I decided to check out the offerings. And I was so glad I did! Or maybe I shouldn’t have been so glad, because I found something yummy: Blue Bell Bride’s Cake Ice Cream. It’s almond flavored ice cream with cake pieces and amaretto flavored cream cheese icing swirl. I wasn’t sure about the “amaretto flavored cream cheese icing,” but I should have just trusted Blue Bell. I bought it, of course, and opened it as soon as I got home…heavenly. What I really love is that the flavors aren’t too strong, but it’s delicious. If you like ice cream and wedding cake, try it…you won’t regret it. Seriously…run, don’t walk.

Blue Bell Bride’s Cake Ice Cream

Because I was near the refrigerated area, I decided to walk over and get some pimiento cheese. I’ve written before about Palmetto Cheese, a brand of pimiento cheese spread made in Pawley’s Island, South Carolina. I prefer the jalapeño flavor for a little extra kick. But that was not a new find.

Palmetto Cheese

The new find in the same aisle? Texas Pete’s Blazin’ Buffalo-Style Chicken Dip. Holy smokes! I have always loved Bufflo-style chicken dip, but I had no idea Texas Pete’s made their own! I’ve loved Texas Pete’s products for a long time, but I really started loving them in 2002 for an odd reason: I read the obituary of Mildred Garner, the widow of Thad Garner, the founder of T. W. Garner Foods in Winston-Salem, the parent company of Texas Pete’s. See the obituary here. I know, an obituary is a weird reason to like food products, but read it…Mrs. Garner was my kind of people! I especially loved the part about people recalling “the sight of Mildred driving the family’s red Austin-Healy, holding an umbrella against the rain, smoking a RJR cigarette, and changing gears successfully.” I can’t help it. I love a good obituary. And yes, it made me love Texas Pete’s. But until today, I had never had the Blazin’ Buffalo-Style Chicken Dip. I didn’t even know it existed! So I purchased it, brought it home, and enjoyed it with some Tostitos chips. I only ate a few bites, but suffice it to say…it’s good stuff!

Texas Pete Blazin’ Buffalo-Style Chicken Dip

After picking that up, I found myself back in the frozen foods, and I spied something I used to buy all the time: De Waffelbakker’s Frozen Pancakes. Call me lazy, but it’s a lot easier for me to make frozen pancakes in the microwave than it is for me to make them on the stovetop. When our daughter was little, she loved them, so we kept them on hand all the time. In fact, my late friend, Wendy, thought I was crazy when I offered them to her son one time, saying, “I make homemade pancakes for him. He won’t eat those microwave ones.” We had a good laugh when he proved her wrong and announced that “Miss Kelly makes the best pancakes ever!” Wendy just rolled her eyes. I can hardly wait for my daughter to come home from school, so I can offer her some pancakes!

De Waffelbakkers Buttermilk Pancakes

I also purchased some cookies that weren’t so great. I had high hopes for them, because they had a giant picture of the Pillsbury Dough Boy on the package. When I was a little girl, I thought the Pillsbury Dough Boy was the cutest little character. Too bad the soft-baked cookies didn’t live up to the packaging.

Yes, I brought all those things home and tried a little of each. Fortunately, I had a spinach salad for lunch, so I didn’t feel terrible about the fact that I had tried all that junk.

I guess it was one-stop shopping for me today…something for our daughter to wear for Safari day tomorrow, and a whole bunch of junk food for us to share.