Gift Guide: Mermaid Pillow (Giveaway)

With the holiday's right around the corner a lot of people are starting to think about and plan for their Christmas shopping! This year we are cutting back on presents for the kids because they have way more then they need already; and with living a tiny home it makes for a lot of clutter. One gift that I happy to give to my kids is new bedding and bedding accessories. 

I love being able to update their bedrooms and make them more to each child's style. Since the kids share rooms we do not decorate the entire room in a set theme. So the kids bedding is what helps make their bedrooms more personable. Recently I got the opportunity to get Sweet Pea a Mermaid Pillow for her bed. 

Hot Toy Alert! Fingerlings HUGS

*This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, you'll be helping to feed the little angels here at Andersons Angels.

It is that time of year to start thinking about your Christmas shopping and getting your hands on the hottest toys of the season early! This is one of those toys that I would recommend grabbing quickly while they are available! Last year the big thing was the Fingerlings and this year one of the Big Ticket items is going to be Fingerling HUGS!

COMING SOON: RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET: WRECK-IT RALPH 2

My family just watched Wreck It Ralph last night and we are all super excited for Ralph Breaks The Internet to be released!

RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET: WRECK-IT RALPH 2 leaves Litwak's video arcade behind, venturing into the uncharted, expansive and thrilling world of the internet - which may or may not survive Ralph's wrecking. Video game bad guy Ralph and fellow misfit Vanellope von Schweetz must risk it all by traveling to the world wide web in search of a replacement part to save Vanellope's video game, Sugar Rush. In way over their heads, Ralph and Vanellope rely on the citizens of the interent - the netizens - to help navigate their way, including a website entrepreneur named Yesss, who is the head algorithm and the heart and soul of trend-making site "BuzzzTube."

Yum Yum Sauce (Japanese White Sauce)

Last night I made Hibachi Chicken and Fried Rice for dinner. It was a huge hit with the family and you can find the recipe here on the blog. Today I wanted to share the recipe I used to make the Japanese White Sauce known as Yum Yum Sauce. It is a very simple and easy sauce to make that I will probably be making a lot now as my kids loved it! They even said they want it just to dip veggies in instead of Ranch. 

Ingredients for Yum Yum Sauce:

1 1/4 cups Mayonnaise (real stuff not Miracle Whip)

1/4 cup water

1 tsp ketchup

1 Tbsp melted butter

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp seasoning salt

Directions for Yum Yum Sauce:

Combine all ingredients in a medium size bowl and refrigerate until you are ready to eat dinner. I made mine up about 1/2 hour before dinner and put it in the fridge until dinner was ready.

ENJOY!!

Hibachi Chicken with Fried Rice Dinner

I have become burned out on cooking the same thing all the time and even my kids have started asking to try new foods. Mr. Anderson and I took the big to a local Hibachi restaurant a couple weeks back and they loved. So I thought I would try to fix some at home and I must say that I was terrified that I would mess it completely up. Since it was not a epic fail instead a triumph I am sharing the recipes with you and I hope you enjoy them as much as we did.

Black Raspberry Braided Bread (Bread Machine Recipe)

One of my favorite things to make come summer is my Black Raspberry Braided Bread. It has quickly become a favorite among my family and friends as well. This year we did a fundraiser with the bread to help Bubba earn the money he needed to go to camp with our Youth Group. You need a bread machine to make the dough portion of this recipe. My hand is next to the bread so you can see how large one loaf is.

COMING SOON: THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS

All Clara wants is a key - a one-of-a-kind key that will unlock a box that holds a priceless gift. A golden thread, presented to her at godfather Drosselmeyer's annual holiday party, leads her to the coveted key - which promptly disappears into a strange and mysterious parallel world. It's there that Clara encounters a solider named Phillip, a gang of mice and the regents who preside over three Realms: Land of Snowflakes, Land of Flowers and Land of Sweets. Clara and Phillip must brave the ominous Fourth Realm, home to the tyrant Mother Ginger, to retrieve Clara's key and hopefully return harmony to the unstable world. 

Like THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DisneyNutcracker

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THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS opens in theatres everywhere on November 2nd!

Hot Toy Alert! Fingerlings Untamed

*This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, you'll be helping to feed the little angels here at Andersons Angels.

Last year one of the hottest toys was the Fingerlings by WowWee. This year I think it is going to be the WowWee Untamed Raptor by Fingerlings! These adorable yet ferocious little T-Rex's will make you want to roar. There are 8 different Raptors available each one with it's own personality. Angel quickly fell in love with hers which is known as "Scratch".

23 Kitchen Tips & Tricks

So I am always finding new little tricks to help me in the kitchen and I wanted to share some with you. I have a list of 23 Kitchen Tips for you below. If you try and any let me know how they work for you or if you have a tip feel free to leave it in a comment.

FRITTER AWAY: (recipe)Got zucchini? Make fritters! The key to making them crispy is to first lightly salt the coarsely grated vegetable and set aside in a colander to drain for 15 minutes. Then wrap it up in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze firmly to expel as much liquid as possible.

KERNEL KEEPER: An easy way to prevent corn from going everywhere when you are cutting it off the cob is to use a bundt pan. Place the cob in the center, standing it up on the protrusion, and cut downward so the kernals tumble directly into the pan.

JAVA JUICE: For the ultimate iced coffee, brew several cups of your favorite blend and sweeten to taste with condensed milk. Cool, then pour into ice cube trays (silicone are the easiest) and freeze overnight. Use these to chill your iced coffee and they will only enhance, never dilute.

TOMATO TIME: Prolong the life and enhance the flavor of ripe tomatoes by keeping them at room temperature rather than in the fridge. Always store them stem end down. This prevents air from entering - through the cut stem. If possible, eat them within 2 days.

SUMMER, CUBED: (recipe) Preserve fresh herbs, such as thyme, chives, and rosemary, by chopping them finely and packing them into an ice cube tray. Top up with olive oil, then cover with plastic wrap and freeze. The cubes dissolve easily into sauces and provide bright flavor all year long.

Things To Do When Car Buying

3 Things You Should Do Before Buying Your First Car

After saving up some money and getting approved for a car loan, you may be ready to invest in a reliable vehicle that you will get to use whenever you want to go somewhere. The feeling of no longer needing to depend on anyone else to take you to different places is wonderful, but there are a few different things you should do before you spend the money on your first car. Because it is something you may drive around in for quite a few years, you need to make sure you are buying something that is perfect for you based on what you prefer to ride and what types of features are important to you.

Do Some of Your Own Research on All Different Types of Vehicles

The first thing you can do is use your phone or laptop to do some research on some of the many types of vehicles that are available. With so many different makes and models, it is often a challenge trying to figure out which one to buy. There are compact vehicles, sedans, mid-size cars, luxury vehicles, and so much more. While you need to spend time thinking about what you would feel comfortable driving and how much space you are going to need to have based on how many people will ride in your car with you, finding out more about the features these different vehicles come equipped with is even more important.

Later models tend to have all the updated features and may come equipped with more technology than older models. You will need to decide if you prefer to keep it simple or if you want to find something that comes with all the latest and greatest features a driver could possibly want to have in the car they are going to own.

Delicious Snacks from Absolutely Gluten (Giveaway)

One thing that I have discovered over the past year is that the majority of my family has a gluten allergy. Due to this I have been working to find delicious snacks and dinners to feed my family. This has been tricky as they know what they like and do not want to stray away from their favorites. Recently I was offered the opportunity to work with Absolutely Gluten Free and I was excited to do so. I was hoping that my family would really enjoy the products that we received.