Trader Joe's: A grocery store. A culture. A DESTINATION. I don't work for TJ's, I am simply a customer who loves the store, the products, & the experience.
This blog was a year-long project. In 2015 I reviewed 1 TJ's product EVERY SINGLE DAY. I visited lots of TJ's stores around the country, and when the year ended I couldn't stop. I still post often (though not daily) & I welcome your comments on the products & reviews.
Mistletoe from Trader Joe's - the most important decoration of the season!
We have been a bit frantic this holiday season - traveling, working, rushing about... So, I am just gonna tell it like it is:
SO FAR THE ONLY HOLIDAY DECORATIONS WE HAVE OUT ARE A MENORAH (with no candles in it yet...) and A MISTLETOE from Trader Joe's (that is not actually HUNG UP yet...).
And, umm, it is Christmas eve! And Hanukkah is over. Yes, it is December 24th and we have practically NO decorations!
But honestly, we are non-traditional celebrators. We celebrate any and all holidays (hence the menorah AND the Christmas spirit). Oh, and we do not celebrate ON TIME. We celebrate when we choose! Why be ruled by a silly calendar when you can celebrate on whatever day feels right??
This is us under what we deemed THE WORLD'S LARGEST MISTLETOE in Stockholm, Sweden, November 2017
So perhaps we will find someone's Christmas tree put out for the garbage men in a day or two... And perhaps we will "recycle" that and make it our own. Or maybe (most likely) we will forego a tree this year all together and find another way to express our holiday spirit.
In the meantime, we are holed away in Vino Volo at the St. Louis airport (near gate E18 :) ) enjoying our Christmas Eve dinner during a 3 hour layover. We visited my family in Omaha all week and are on the way back home.
Ho ho ho - Merrrrry Christmas (with a wine flight)
But we wanted to take a moment to wish you a happy, merry, joyous WHATEVER (and whenever) you celebrate.
And though it is probably too late to snag some mistletoe at Trader Joe's THIS YEAR, just know that next year when you see it you should grab some. It is totally effective and works wonders! (Original reviews here:
2016 crop Trader Joe's Mistletoe review click here
2015 crop Trader Joe's Mistletoe review click here
THIS PRODUCT STILL RATES A 5 STAR REVIEW! Year after year, Trader Joe's mistletoe delivers.
This is my periodic reminder to YOU, dear reader, to BUY FLOWERS FOR YOUR MOTHER.
Go to Trader Joe's. Pick up a poinsettia if they still have some in stock. Get one of those sweet little Christmas trees in pots. Get a bouquet of pretty colored blooms. Get ANYTHING - just GET FLOWERS FOR YOUR MOTHER!
Sure, she may say, "I don't need flowers,". She might say, "Oh, you shouldn't have...". But trust me, you SHOULD.
And you might think, "But I can't afford flowers! I mean, it is the holiday season, I have spent so much on gifts already, I am strapped for cash". But flowers at Trader Joe's are very, very reasonably priced, and your mom will SMILE when you give them to her.
Don't wait for a special occasion- do it today. Think of all she has done for you - all of the "gifts" she has given over the years (some that came in boxes and some that were gifts of time and love). Gift her back! Show her you care. Do it today.
Do it while you can still look her in the eye as you hand them to her. Tell her how thankful you are for all she has done for you. If you are 6, 16, or 50 - if your mom is still here on earth, GIVE HER FLOWERS.
Because someday, you won't be able to hand them to her. Sure, you might still buy them in her memory, but trust me, it is not the same. Give them to her NOW, while she can appreciate them.
Happy holidays one and all. And God bless us, every one.
Today’s review is of a holiday product – Trader Joe’s Cinnamon
Roll Wreath. We are visiting Omaha,
Nebraska to have an early Christmas celebration with my family, so I thought,
“Who better to invite to be guest reviewers than my dad and his wife??”. May I present – John (my dad) and Evelyn (his
wife)!!
Ho, ho, ho - MERRRRRY CHRISTMAS! Santa stopped by early!
This photo was taken the night of our family Christmas, when Santa
showed up!Yup, the big man himself made
an appearance!It was quite fun.We have 5 believers in our family – well, 4
believers and 1 too young to really get it…But they all liked Santa (wellll, that is stretching it…In all honesty, the 2 toddlers were not so
fond of the jolly old fat man).But the
adults loved him!
Tallis is one of our BELIEVERS. She WHISPERED what she wanted to Santa!
Anyway, David and I stopped at the Omaha Trader Joe’s in One Pacific
Place and picked up a few things, including a CINNAMON ROLL WREATH.The whole family was crashing my dad’s house
(uninvited) to eat pizza after a hockey game, and I thought a few cinnamon
rolls after pizza sounded great.However, I failed to read the package instructions…
Oops, I should have turned the box over and read the other side...
These suckers are not simple to prepare.I mean, they are not DIFFICULT by any stretch
of the imagination, but they are not like a tube of Pillsbury rolls that you
just pop open and bung in the oven.These need to sit and rise before baking.Also, they do not come with the GLAZE…Again, I should have read that and known
before we bought them, but it was a “grab and run” because we are rushing
around doing family things.Had I KNOWN
we needed to make glaze, we would have picked up some powdered sugar (because,
let’s be honest here, my dad and Evelyn do not cook much., let alone BAKE, so
finding powdered sugar that was not expired a decade ago in the pantry would have
been impossible…).In the “fly by the
seat of your pants” category, David Googled and learned he could make the glaze
with regular (not powdered sugar), which he found and mixed with water and
vanilla to make glaze.
So, due to these treats needing to rise before baking, having them
as a late night snack was out.
Hey look - a WREATH made out of CINNAMON ROLLS! (Pre-glaze)
But that left them for breakfast the next morning!Evelyn had sort of a hard time waiting for
them (because, like I said, they had to rise).But when they were finally ready, she was thrilled with the
results.Here is what everyone thought:
Dad: “These are
delicious! I give them a 4.95. It sounds hard to make them, but it really
wasn’t. Susan is making it sound like
they are very difficult to make, but they really are not (editor’s note: Dad did not assist with the preparation… 😊 ) .
I like them WITH the frosting best – David makes a mean glaze. If they were any better they would be
perfect! I give these a 4.95. (Editor’s note: I explained that normally in this blog we
only use .25 variations, so he could give them a 4.5 or a 4.75 or a 5. But he INSISTED on the 4.95. And he is the dad, so he gets to pick his
score!)
Dad loved them
Evelyn:“I would say these
are perfect!I prefer them with the
glaze.They are perfect! Let’s have them again!I give them a score of 5.”
David: “The taste is
nice. The glaze is good. They are a little under-cooked, a bit
under-done tasting. (Editor’s note yet
again: I followed the instructions and
baked these right in the middle of the recommended baking range time.) I like them.
I give them a 3.5.”
David liked 'em
Susan:I agree with David that
the centers of the cinnamon rolls were a bit underdone, but I sort of like that
taste.I agree with everyone else that
the frosting/glaze is a good addition.I
think the whole “wreath” concept is super pretty.If I got them again I would bake them a bit
longer.These would be good for Christmas
morning breakfast.I give them a 4.5.
Sweet, fluffy, and buttery - good description
There you have it. If your
Trader Joe’s still has these in stock, grab a box. They are fun and tasty.
MERRY CHRISTMAS from Susan and David (and Santa, of course)
We purchased another Trader Joe's Real Mistletoe this year. I mean, we HAD to test it and make sure that it held the same romantic powers as the two previous years' crops, right? It is all for science, folks!
2016 Real Mistletoe crop - a winner!!
I am happy to report that Trader Joe's Real Mistletoe, 2016 crop is very effective. It is full of holiday cheer and, most importantly, KISS power.
And it is still very cheap.
Friends Tracy and Vince testing the 2015 crop - 2 thumbs up!
You need it. Again. It is something you must renew annually. (Full disclosure - we also have a silver mistletoe that stays up year round. It never "goes off". Cuz you never know when the need for a kiss might hit sometime outside of the holiday season, and you need to be prepared. I guess you could call us preppers.)
We wholeheartedly recommend you rush out and grab one of these mistletoes at TJ's. They are an excellent investment. Here is the complete 2015 review: Real Mistletoe
Simple package, simple product, great results
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
It worked in 2014, and it still works to this day (well, I mean this year's crop still works)
Price: I think it is still $1.99 this year, but however much it is you should invest in one
Rating: STILL A GLORIOUS 5
This gluhwein is the only product that I remember
reviewing this year that I wanted to get and use not to just see what it tastes like, but for the experience. I packed this bottle of mulled wine and
brought it to Florida with us knowing that I wanted to sneak away to the beach
and drink it with my love by candlelight.
NOT planned was the fact that when we finally decided to
drink said gluhwein, there would be a bit too much wind at the beach and the
candles would not stay lit… J However, the moon was most cooperative and
shone brightly to light up the night even sans candles.
(Note - I captioned that video via YouTube, but I think it automatically made the captions BLACK and I cannot figure out how to change them... Given the setting the video was shot in, perhaps black lettering was not the best choice...)
I liked the gluhwein from Trader Joe's but fully admit my bias: sitting in the dark night by the ocean with
my love, I think I could enjoy drinking mulled anything really.
This is the perfect setting for drinking anything really
But as far as this gluhwein from Trader Joe’s goes, I liked
it. It reminded me of being at Christmas
Markets in Germany and drinking gluhwein out of blue ceramic mugs. This particular bottle was spicy and tasty. It is a good holiday drink.
My opinion is that every family should buy one bottle of
this gluhwein to heat up and drink around the holidays. It is a nice way to celebrate the season. I give this Trader Joe’s bottle a 4.5.
David says, “I think this gluhwein is nice. Really, it is designed to be drunk in a cold temperature, like Susan said. Like in a cold German Christmas Market where
you have been walking around all day. You
have stayed out longer than you should – your hands and feet are cold – but you
are having such a good time. Then you
come upon a stand selling HOT GLUHWEIN and the warmth and the spices (and
alcohol/wine) all make it fabulous.
As I drank this Trader Joe’s gluhwein, we were in a
lovvvvely location, but even though it was close to midnight it was pretty darn
warm out, probably around 78 degrees… So it was a nice experience, but a bit warm
for this particular drink.
Technically the spices in the gluhwein were very nice. The
flavor was good but not quite as full
and rich are you might like. It had kind of a slight hint of ALCOHOL in
the kind of HOSPITAL sense. Tangy,
rather than rich, full bodied wine. It might
be better if they used a more rich wine, but, ya know… the point is the spices and the warmth and
it certainly delivers on that account. I
would give this a 4.25.”
Let’s take a peek at PRICING of gluhwein, too. Though this Trader Joe’s version is cheaper
than if you picked a bottle up at, say, World Market, I found the SAME BOTTLE
for EVEN LESS at Aldi (remember Aldi – I talked about it here). Finding it at TJ’s and Aldi was
hit or miss for both stores – as you know Aldi only carries things a limited
time and we learned that some TJ’s locations never got gluhwein (even though
they sold wine). So if you want some you
may need to shop around a bit to find it.
Pricing at Trader Joe's
Pricing at Aldi - a buck cheaper
The bottle at Aldi's was a bit different,
but I think it is basically the same wine, don't you?
Done with the review, but here is a bit more news. Remember when I told you that we recently
checked out a new (for us) Trader Joe’s in Jacksonville Beach, FL? Well, I had the great good fortune there to
actually MEET 2 of their sign artists - Ryan Paule and Brook Page!!!
LOOK - I got to meet and talk to two real live sign artists!!!
I have explained this earlier in the blog, but let me
recap it here for those who didn’t see it:
each TJ’s location has their own in-store artists who make allllll the
signage – the beautiful artwork you probably see when you enter, then pieces
all around the high up areas of the store, and even the PRICING signs. All of it is done in-house! I love TJ’s signage, and I think it is one
aspect of the stores that really make each one unique. I have really enjoyed looking at all of the
artwork as we travelled around and visited different stores, but I had never
MET any of the sign makers. Until last
week, that is! J
Look at this awesome sign above their sampling station!! Each TJ's has a different name for this area.
I think this one is adorable, don't you?
So Ryan and Brook are two of the people who make the
amazing signs in the Jacksonville Beach, Florida store. Aren’t the signs great?? We even got to meet a 3rd sign
maker when we checked out – he was giving us some of the ins and outs of making
signs (for example – I had never thought about how tough it would be to fit
more than ONE product on a sign for an end cap…). He had recently made a bunch of signs for the
wine department. He explained that the
store is moving towards the plain white and black pricing signs – I for one
would vote against that, they look too much like other boring stores to
me. I prefer the more creative ones! J (I cannot remember the name of the sweet artist at the check out, but our receipt says "B. Greg" - shout out to you!)
This is a pretty sign right at the entrance to the Jacksonville Beach store.
We learned that it was made by an artist who came to this location to help open it up.
I would think drawing and writing those signs would be a
full-time job – there are soooo many signs in each store! But the sign makers explained that they don’t
“only” do the artwork, they are out on the floor, too. Cool, eh??
It was an honor to meet them and hear about their work.
This Jacksonville Beach sign made us giggle! Yikes - they are EVERYWHERE!!! :)
Be sure to check out the signs in your local Trader Joe’s
the next time you stop in. And take time
to compliment the artists if you can! They
sure deserve it.
And now a general life note: be sure to take time to do whatever brings
YOU peace and relaxation: sitting on a
beach, reading a book, running a marathon, taking a nap… Whatever it is that is special to you – do it! Yes, it sometimes seems impossible to “make
time” for what you want to do – work is busy, the house is a mess, maybe you
have kids that need driven somewhere. But
if you do not take care of YOU, you are no good to the rest of the world. J So every once in a while at least – leave the
house dirty, ask a neighbor to chauffeur a kid, and actually clock out of work
at 5 PM. Make time to do what is
special to you. I for one am glad that,
after over ten days of putting off heating up the gluhwein and walking to the
beach at night in lieu of sitting on the couch and watching television, I finally
decided to bust out the mulled wine last night.
Make time. Cuz you
are worth it.
And just like that, the gluhwein review in the books. J
Last night David and I reprised our roles of Mary and
Joseph in Drive Thru Bethlehem!! It is
held every year at the Drive In Church of Daytona Beach, FL. We first noticed the church when we drove by
it one time and couldn’t believe our eyes – a DRIVE IN CHURCH?? I researched it a bit and it is a legit
thing: people drive in, park, and stay
in their cars for Sunday service, listening on the radio tuned into a specific channel. :) Then I found out they have a DRIVE THRU
BETHLEHEM, and well, how could I pass that up???
Drive Thru Bethlehem family photo 2015: Joseph holding Black 'n' White, me holding plastic Baby Jesus, and depressed donkey Forest behind me.
The first year I signed us up to be an angel (me)
standing waaaaay high up on scaffolding and wearing beauuuutiful wings, and a
Wise Man (David) pointing at the star. Only
when we got there, they had an emergency:
NO MARY! So they asked if I would
play Mary, and the rest is history (or her-story, as the case would be). J Last night was year number 3 for me to play
Mary and year 2 for David as Joseph.
Mary and Baby Jesus in a quiet moment, getting PHOTO BOMBED by Salt the bunny
Typical manger photo scene - camera proppped on the ground in hay and poop,
Mary runs to her seat to get there before the camera timer goes off, and the GOATS start eating the camera,
necessitating Mary to LEAP UP to save the camera and both of us to crack up.
We only do a 2 hour shift, but it is so lovely! Cars turn off their headlights, tune into the
right radio station, and drive thru to see basket and rug weavers, angels on
high (scaffolding, which looked quite dangerous in high winds last night!), a
baker, candlemaker, wise men, and of course, the grand finale of MARY and
JOSEPH with little BABY JESUS (who is played by a doll that has really
strangely demonic looking eyeballs and Elvis like hair… Every year I want to bring my own doll but am
afraid to look like a Mary prima donna so I don’t…). Our stable has REAL LIVE ANIMALS in it and they
are always hilarious. This year we had
geese, a duck (we can’t tell ducks and geese apart mind you), 2 baby lambs, 2
bunnies (named Salt ‘n’ Peppa!!), a one month old donkey named Forest who
seemed extremely depressed and we suspect needed medication, a mini bull
named Kai who became fast friends with David/Joseph, 2 tiny goats (one who had
devil like horns that we named “Satan” but later learned was actually named
Cain), and a sheep. For someone who has
not really been around animals, this is my yearly exposure!! For 2 hours I am surrounded by farm
life!! I even pet some of them last
night. The little black and white goat
(who we named Black ‘n’ White) was super cute, and the mini bull and baby
donkey were so surprisingly SOFT.
Mary in a moment of PANIC - the animals were going nuts!!
I love that evening every year. I always suspect I get more out of it than
the people in the cars driving through. Last
night we got the most genuine “God bless you” that I have ever heard directed
at us, and a woman who sounded as if her breath was actually taken away by it
all managed to squeak out, “It is so be-auuuu-ti-ful…..”. We have never attended church there but are
glad they let us volunteer every year.
Peace on earth, good will to man. Joseph signing off for the year.
I am late writing today’s review (it is 4:00 pm) because I
am feeling so lazy. I finally showered
(with TJ’s Refresh Body Wash, of course, reviewed here just yesterday) and am now sitting out on the patio to
write. It is 71 degrees so this is a
lovely excuse to get some fresh air and write.
Let’s review Pizza Parlanno, shall we?
It's a frozen pizza, do look in the frozen section to find it. Duh.
I didn’t think this pizza was great. it was a FROZEN PIZZA, not much better than
any you would get at another store. I don’t
have a lot of frozen pizza eating experience to compare this one to, but I don’t
think it is much better than the BBQ Chicken one we ate the other night with
our guests
David added extra mozzarella to this one, which
helped. I added garlic powder and crushed
red pepper which also improved the taste. The main taste I got out of this
pizza was SAUSAGE. I didn’t really taste
the pepperoni at all (even though I could see it). the only tastes I got were SAUSAGE, cheese,
and crust.
Just because it wasn't my favorite dinner doesn't mean I didn't eat a lot of it.
This pizza will do the job if you need a quick dinner but
I could not call it “gourmet” food.
David agrees that this is a “do the job” type of
dish. He says, “It is a meat enjoyers pizza. The sausage and pepperoni both seem like high
quality meat and not gristle. The extra mozzarella
cheese is nice but may not be
necessary because the crust tastes good.
It’s a frozen pizza, but it is a good quality one. I would give it a 4.”
I would use the five bucks to buy one of TJ's better tasting pizzas/flat breads if I were you.
Neither of us could taste the peppers, but David could
taste the pepperoni. This is a fast,
quick, and easy dish. It is not one I want
to eat every week (I probably won’t buy it again), but if you are a family that
likes PIZZA a lot, you might dig it. I give
it a 3.
As mentioned
elsewhere in this blog, we do not eat a lot of pizza. When we DO, we often make it ourselves using
TJ’s dough ( reviewed here). But because
I wanted to try a product we had not eaten before, I picked up a frozen pizza –
TJ’s BBQ Chicken Pizza topped with tangy BBQ sauce, chicken, mozzarella, Gouda,
and red onions.
Here's the box. It is in the frozen food section.
I popped that sucker in the oven the other night when we
had some friends from Kansas City staying with us. They were on a cool quest – Tracy decided she
wanted to see as many Christmas trees as she could this holiday season and
Vince works for an airline (which means free flights!) so off they went!!! I had tickets to the White House Christmas
tree lighting ceremony so they put DC on their list to visit! They had been outside for a few hours waiting
for the tree to be lit, then had stopped in a pizzeria on the way back to our
house (unbeknownst to me, or I would not have tried to feed them PIZZA!). Anyway, of course I made them try it and help
review it even though they weren’t hungry.
J Cuz that’s what friends are for, right?
David was the "limo driver" to pick up the guests at the airport.
The box said it was 3 servings of pizza. We had 2 hungry people (David and myself) and
2 full people (the guests). After a
couple of bites I brought out the Trader Joe’s Green Dragon sauce for those who
were interested. Here is what people
thought of the pizza:
After cooking, before eating.
David – “I like it.
It is nice. I like the sauce and
items like the chicken ratio in the middle.
As it gets toward the ends there is quite a lot of CRUST. Thank God someone recommended Sriracha sauce
and that makes it ok in the crusty area, otherwise it would be a little
barren. This could be a dinner. It is convenient and it is tasty. I would give it a 4.” (Editor here: it was not
sriracha, it was TJ’s Green Dragon sauce (not yet reviewed), and “someone” did
not recommend it, I (Susan) went and got it out of the fridge and walked it
allllll the way to the dining room (like 15 steps maybe!). But TJ’s DOES do a good sriracha sauce, it
was reviewed here .
Guest reviewer Vince (married to Tracy, from a small town
that loves to shoot off fireworks near Kansas City, where they KNOW their BBQ
sauce) – “I enjoyed it, it was very tasty.
But the sauce was lacking and it could use a little bit more BBQ
sauce. I give it a 3.”
Guest reviewers VINCE and TRACY!
Guest reviewer Tracy (a very fun woman) – “I would give
it a 4.5. I REALLLLLY liked it for a
frozen pizza. I am most impressed with
the cheese ratio because I always have to add additional cheese to my frozen
pizzas and this one I didn’t find lacking in that area at all. The BBQ sauce was a little sweet for my taste but I got over that
pretty quickly and the sriracha sauce was a nice tip!” (Editor again: IT WAS GREEN DRAGON SAUCE, PEOPLE! J
)
Me – I thought there was too much CRUST around the
edge. I wish the cheesey part would have
spread out further so there was less naked crust. I could have used more SAUCE on it, too. I thought the chicken was good, but overall I
thought the pizza was a bit boring.
The Green Dragon hot sauce helped a lot, but I do not think you should have to add hot sauce, I think the pizza
should be able to stand on its own. I give
it a 3.5.
Not a bad price.
Well, scores were pretty varied – from a 3 to a 4.5. I will average them together and give it a
final number.
Tracy on her quest to SEE MANY CHRISTMAS TREES - this one is at Union Station, Washington DC.
This I believe*:
no matter how much you cut corners, save pennies, and sacrifice, there
are some moments when you need to TREAT YOURSELF. Those special treats are what make all of the
thriftiness pay off. I think this is one
of my core values – be careful with your money and time, but once in a while,
SPLURGE!!
This advent calendar is one such splurge.
Here it is folks - the Valrhona Advent Calendar 2015
Look, we do not NEED
an advent calendar. We are adults and
can pretty much count days on our own without needing to open a little
window.
Plus, at our house we do not even RESPECT the days as they are presented to us on any given calendar! No lie – we have a very large pile of
UNOPENED gifts that we got for each other from Christmases and birthdays
past. There they are – all wrapped up
neatly with bows, and piled high, shiny, smiling at us, waiting patiently to be
opened. Some are years old! They are like a
great archeological site. Who knows what
is in them?? Certainly not us! When we decide it is an “open a present day”
(the mood strikes every once in a while!) the GIVER of the gift is normally equally
as surprised as the RECEIVER, because the present has been wrapped so long no
one knows what in the world is in
there! It is exciting!!
All of that is to say, even when we get to the END of
this advent calendar, it will not be like the starting gun of some race that
announces, “This is it!!! It is time to
begin! OPEN… THE…. PRESENTS!!!”. The end of the advent calendar (for us) will
be “OH look, a bigger bar of chocolate on this day!”.
So although we did not NEED an advent calendar, we bought
this one. There was one for a
fraction of the cost sitting right next to it on the Trader Joe’s shelf, but we
chose this FANCY ONE. Because we decided the splurge was worth it
at that moment.
In our morning attire (and hair dos) TREATING OURSELVES by opening not one but TWO windows on our new calendar
And it was!
“Wait…” you may be thinking. “How do they know it was WORTH IT
already? It is not time to open the
first window yet!!”.
Did you learn NOTHING by reading the paragraph above that
explains that we do not really respect “correct” holiday dates at our
house??? J
Plus, we HAD
to try the chocolates in this calendar early if I was going to review it in
time for you to rush to your local Trader Joe’s and pick one up, right???
If you think the outside is pretty, wait until you open a door and see the wrapping on a chocolate!!
The concept of this product is the same as other advent
calendars – you peel open a little cardboard window everyday and reveal a treat
inside. Only, with THIS one, unlike
other advent calendars, you are not greeted by a waxy piece of chocolate made
in the shape of a reindeer. No siree.
Nope. What you
find behind the little doors are lovely petite artisanal chocolate bars. Really yummy ones. Wrapped in pretty papers. They are sort of like the SPA of advent
calendar chocolates. They are like taking
a mini vacation to France (in your mouth!).
Look, we have only eaten two of these little chocolates,
so we have only tasted two of the flavors.
They were amazingly delicious.
They were very high quality chocolate and not the crazy, wacked out
flavor blends that some chocolate companies now think everyone loves. They are rich, complex, DELICIOUS little
chocolate squares. (Spoiler alert – on the
last day of this calendar you get a FULL SIZED VALHRONA CHOCOLATE BAR!!)
This product was pricey.
But we are worth it.
And so are YOU!!!! In this season of rushing about, cooking,
writing cards, baking, and buying/wrapping gifts for other people – make sure
you take at least a moment to TREAT YOURSELF.
For us, these chocolates are a good way to do that. Maybe for you it is taking time to read
People magazine cover to cover. Or
getting your nails done. Or going to a
hockey game.
Whatever it is, just remember to TREAT YOURSELF. That, to me, doesn’t by any means you have to
spend a ton of money. “Treating myself” sometimes means getting a
funky bottle of nail polish. Or buying a
cup of fresh squeezed orange juice and sitting down to savor it. Treating yourself can be ANYTHING. DO IT!
And when you do, if anyone says you are being selfish or extravagant, just
tell ‘em I told you to do it.
Find it at your TJ's with the other holiday products. GO TODAY - they are selling out.
If you want to get this particular advent calendar, make
sure you hustle to your TJ’s today. They
miiiight already be out, but for your sake I hope not. And if they are out of this particular advent
calendar, TREAT YOURSELF to another one of the fancy holiday items there. Go for it!
Seriously, do it. J
Here is a link to the Valhrona website where you can see
their gorgeous chocolates. The only
thing I wish it had is a SMELL functionality where it wafted the scent of
chocolate through your computer speakers. click here to see amazing chocolate
Price – an expensive $9.99
Rating – 5, rating based on
taste, beauty, joy, and the ability to make us feel pampered
*- credit to NPR for the “This I Believe” concept. If you have not listened to any “This I
Belive”s, you must. They are really
powerful and will make you consider what is important to you. This I Believe
Obviously, this is a seasonal product. J But it is one I highly suggest you grab next
holiday season!!! Real mistletoe is
sometimes difficult to find – and you do not want that cheap plastic crappy
kind. I cannot guarantee the
effectiveness of fake mistletoe.
Real Mistletoe - you need this for the holidays!
I CAN, however, tell you that this Trader Joe’s
Real Mistletoe worked like a dream! Rarely
does an investment under $2.00 have such lovely outcomes! I hung it with a red ribbon and it was very
effective at encouraging lovers crossing under it to stop and smooch.
Real Mistletoe in action - see?? Works perfectly!
We picked it up near a check-out. Be on the look-out for it next holiday
season!!
