Tammie's Take~

Reasons To Appreciate Life

Reviews · November 24, 2018

Life is a truly crazy thing. It changes so much and leads in so many different directions that it can be hard to really look at it objectively and appreciate what you have. Many people are always looking for something else or looking forward to the next thing, rather than keeping their current situation in their mind and looking for the positive even in what might be a negative time at first glance. Here are some of the best reasons to appreciate your life and make the most of what you have.

You Can’t Go Back

One of the biggest reasons to spend your time appreciating what you have now is that the past cannot be revisited. You can remember it, think about it, enjoy those memories, but you can never actually go back there. This is why it is so much better to enjoy the present. This involves being what is known as mindful – appreciating the present time, even if it isn’t what you might have wanted. It can be hard to do, but it will make you less stressed, worried, and more able to focus on what you are doing, and do it well.

You Can Change Things

When you appreciate what you have and what is good in your life, you are better placed to see what is not so good in both your own life and other people’s. When you can do this successfully, you then have the power to change things. Create or sign a petition such as the call to end daylight saving time if it will make lives better. Change what you are doing so that you are able to be more positive. Help other people make changes in their own lives. If enough people were to do this, real positive change can be achieved in every part of every life.

You’ll Waste Time

If you are constantly waiting for the next thing to happen, or looking beyond what you are doing now to the next big achievement, then you are wasting the present, and that is something you can never get back. You might not enjoy school so you wish for graduation, for example. However, this means that you aren’t really looking at what you could be doing now to make yourself happier. The same is true in every aspect of life – take the time to appreciate what you have right now, and you’ll realize that you can always find something to enjoy, and you don’t have to always be striving for the next event or achievement to happen.

You’re In Control

When you step back and look around you and start to appreciate you life more, you put yourself in control. This means that other people and the circumstances you find yourself in don’t have any power over you anymore, and you are more easily able to stay happy and positive. For those who don’t appreciate what they have and are always looking for something more, the actions of other people and circumstances beyond their control can easily serve as an excuse for not changing how they live or how they feel. Remember that it is always your choice to be happy and positive, no matter what is going on around you – keep this in mind and practice it all the time and you will always be the one in control.

No One Is Perfect

If the reason that you don’t take the time or have the inclination to appreciate your life very much, if at all, is that you see everyone else around you doing better, having more fun, with more money or with a great family – perhaps things that you don’t necessarily have – then you need to think again. It is likely that you are seeing these things on social media, and this is the problem; people portray a life that they want others to know about on social media. This doesn’t mean that it is their real life, and it doesn’t necessarily show how they really feel.

Take a look at your own timeline, and you’ll see; much of what you have written, much of the content you have shared, and the photos you have posted will be positive, showing off what you have and how much you are loved. Then relate that back to your real life; in between all the good things that you were posting about, there will have been bad things that you didn’t mention. This is what everyone’s life is like, and comparing yourself to others is useless. The less you do it, the more you can appreciate what you have. Even if you aren’t happy all the time, the good times will hopefully outweigh the bad, and this is what you need to focus on.

Money Won’t Buy You Happiness

Many people feel that more money would buy them happiness, and so they work harder than ever, spending less time with their families, even making themselves sick because of worry and exhaustion. However, if you have food, water, somewhere to live and people you love around you, this is what you should be thinking of and appreciating. Ambition is a good thing, but not when it takes you away from your family and makes you sick. With more money you could buy more things, but do you really need them, or would it be a case of spending the money just because it is there? What would a bigger house, a newer car, or a five-star vacation really do for you that a small house, older car, and a vacation in your own home town couldn’t? Appreciate what you have, and you’ll be much more content, and happier too.

Other People Aren’t So Fortunate

Finally, it’s important to remember that no matter how little you have – or think you have – there will be someone who has less. This doesn’t negate the fact that you might want or need more, but it should give you a little more perspective and allow you to appreciate what you do have a little more.

Mrs. Renfro Gourmet Salsa #Review #HGG18 @MrsRenfros

2018 Holiday Gift Guide, Reviews · November 24, 2018

I received the below mentioned complimentary product either for free or a discounted price for the purpose of this post. All opinions and thoughts are 100% my own.

I am so very much in love with Mrs. Renfro’s Gourmet Salas. This would be the perfect Holiday gift for any Foodie on your gift list~

About The Product/Company~

In 1940, with the Depression still a vivid memory, George Renfro took a big risk for a man with a family. He quit his job selling restaurant supplies and condiments. And with little more than sheer determination and the support of his family, George and his wife, Arthurine, co-founded George Renfro Food Company in the garage of their north Fort Worth home. In their new venture, they distributed packaged spices and pepper sauces throughout Fort Worth and the surrounding areas.
With hard work, George Renfro Food Company grew steadily. By 1948, the Renfros expanded the company’s product line, buying a local syrup manufacturer. Through the tireless efforts of George, his family and a small sales staff that literally sold goods from the back of a truck, the company’s Dixieland Syrups soon had wide distribution throughout Texas grocery stores. Virtually every Dallas-Fort Worth restaurant purchased the syrup from George Renfro Food Company, approximately 85% of the restaurants in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.
Only four short years after adding syrup to its manufacturing line, George was again looking for his next quality product. This time George and Arthurine acquired the formulas of Gold Star Foods. They reworked the ingredients, making them taste more like family recipes. Before long, George Renfro Food Company had entered the jelly, preserve, vinegar and chow chow business as well.
At the time, few Southerners could imagine eating beans or peas without homemade chow chow, especially during the cold winter months. Realizing they had one of the few commercially made, yet homemade-tasting chow chows available, the Renfros capitalized on public demand and created the popular Dixieland Chow Chow.
Response to the blend of cabbage, bell peppers, sugar, spices and vinegar was so tremendous that, by 1960, George Renfro Food Company had become a one-product business focusing exclusively on Dixieland Chow Chow.
By 1963, company sales had more than quadrupled. The Renfros now distributed their chow chow to nearly every grocery store in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and northern Louisiana. As great as everything seemed, George knew there were a few problems. During the warm summer months, grocery store sales traditionally slumped. Consequently, the company created the Mrs. Renfro’s label and began selling the chow chow directly to fruit and vegetable stands. The Dixieland label was exclusively reserved for grocery stores.
With this new direction, sales began to take off. Soon fruit and vegetable stands throughout Texas, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee were carrying the increasingly popular Mrs. Renfro’s products, which by the mid-’60s included Corn Relish and Tomato Relish. There was still, however, a lack of chow chow popularity among younger consumers. For George, the time had come again to look for yet another expansion opportunity.
In 1972, shortly after incorporating under its current name, Renfro Foods, Inc., the family purchased the recipes of Olé Foods, a Mexican-style hot sauce maker. The Renfros anticipated that customers’ tastes were changing, and they quickly made plans to ride the wave of interest in Mexican foods. Reworking the basic taco sauce ingredients of Olé Foods, the Renfros created a richer and tastier salsa recipe. Mrs. Renfro’s salsas gained popularity fast, earning a reputation for quality flavor at a reasonable price. This quick surge in demand lead to a major facilities expansion that more than doubled the company’s production operations.
With George’s death in 1975, Arthurine and the children, Bill and Jack, were left to lead the company into its greatest growth period yet. The country’s love of hot and spicy foods was escalating, and with this, so was the rise in demand for Mrs. Renfro’s products. The product line soon expanded from the original hot or mild sauces to a variety of picantes and medium-style sauces.

My Thoughts/Review~

We love salsa in my home and you can have the great taste of Texan hospitality delivered right to your home too. Mrs. Renfro offers salsas, relishes, peppers and more. They are always coming out with new products and flavors. I received the Nacho Cheese Dip, The Classic Barbecue Sauce, The Craft Beer Salsa and The Medium Salsa. It is funny but we used to love anything the hotter the better until we got in our 50’s and now we can handle only slightly hot. But that’s the thing about Mrs. Renfro. You can get the heat in a level you want or don’t want. This has opened up my world to trying new flavors that I would otherwise would not of. About the products I received- Everyone was tasty and flavorful with just the right amount of ingredients.

I give these products my highest recommendation and my thumbs up. You owe it to yourself and that Foodie on your Holiday gift list to order some by going HERE.

6 Gift Ideas To Consider Giving Your Best Girlfriend

Reviews · November 23, 2018

Whether it’s for the holidays, a birthday or special occasion, you’re going to be faced with the task of giving your best girlfriend a gift at some point. It’s a wise idea to have a few different options top of mind to help make your job easier.

The following six gift ideas are perfect items to package up for your best girlfriend so they feel special and appreciated. Think about the person and what they might enjoy the most to help you narrow it down to the one perfect gift idea. Remember to relax and enjoy shopping around and learning more about your choices and what your friend might find the most appealing.

Jewelry

A lot of women love receiving jewelry, so it’s just a matter of narrowing it down to what piece or pieces you want to gift her. Observe what she wears the most often and what items she might be in most need of before making a purchase. Go online and shop around in the stores to get a better feel for what colors and materials are trending so you can surprise your best friend with jewelry she’ll truly enjoy wearing. Another idea is to get a matching piece for the two of you that you can each wear to represent your friendship. Think about what you might like for yourself to help you come to the right conclusion for your best friend.

An Experience

Additionally, consider giving your best girlfriend an experience that you two can do together. For example, if you know she loves to ski, then purchase tickets to her favorite slopes and make a weekend getaway of it. Be sure you take the time to read more about what to wear skiing so you’re fully prepared to face the cold weather and can enjoy yourself. Other experiences include wine and cheese tasting events, taking an art or yoga class or securing tickets to a show or play that will be in town. This is a great way to spend quality time together and create new memories that you’ll each have forever.

A Cookbook of Your Favorite Recipes

You should also consider the gift idea of putting together your favorite recipes into a cookbook for your best girlfriend. This is not only thoughtful but will allow her to expand her palette a bit and try out new foods that she may not attempt otherwise. You can even pick a day to come over to her house and help her out with some of them and have a nice meal together. She’ll have this item in her kitchen always to remind her of you and as a way to branch out and play around with new recipes and challenge herself in the kitchen. Be sure to include any specific directions or modifications you use, so each one turns out the way you had hoped.

Anything Handmade

Consider giving your best girlfriend a gift idea that’s handmade by you and is truly special in your eyes. She’ll appreciate the time you took to not only come up with the gift, but also the fact that you had to put it together yourself. Some handmade ideas include:

Coffee mugs
Hats, mittens, gloves and scarves
Artwork
Pillows or blankets
Body scrubs or lotions

If this is the way you want to go, be sure to give yourself plenty of time in advance to prepare your gift. If you want to make an item but don’t know what you’re doing, then look around in your local community for classes or shops that offer guidance and can help you accomplish your goal. Your best girlfriend will love the fact that you put so much effort and energy into this unique gift idea for her, so it’s sure to go over well.

A Collage of Memories & Photos

You likely do spend and have spent a lot of quality time with your best girlfriend over the years — another gift idea to consider it to create a collage of memories and photos of some of the best experiences you two have had together. You can either arrange a poster of items or put these images into a photo album for safekeeping. It’ll be so much fun to sit down and look over your collage of memories and reminisce about each different pastime you two have had as friends. There are a lot of various online programs out there that will help you accomplish your goal as well if you’re not feeling very crafty.

Self-Care Basket

Self-care is so important these days because there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of time to worry about yourself. One gift idea worth thinking about giving your best girlfriend is a self-care basket that she can enjoy in the comfort of her own home. For instance, you can include:

Bath soaps
Sleep mask
Facial cream
A journal
New workout top
A robe
Yoga mat

This is such a wonderful gift to receive and will show that you truly care about the health and wellbeing of your best girlfriend. Try to come up with and include items she may not want to buy herself but would desperately love. This will catch her off-guard and be a wonderful and thoughtful gift.

Gift giving isn’t an easy task so don’t feel bad if you’re struggling to come up with ideas for your best girlfriend. Use this list as a way to get you thinking in the right direction and coming up with a few great options you may want to consider this time around. Regardless of what you decide on, your best girlfriend is sure to adore what you give her because it came from you. Enjoy the process and the smile it brings to her face when she opens up your gift. Avoid worrying about the task at hand and instead be thankful that you two have remained friends for so long.

Be A Smart Shopper By Stocking Up On Gift Cards For The Holidays & $50 Visa GC #Giveaway #KrogerGasnGifts #ad

Reviews · November 21, 2018

This is a sponsored post on behalf of Tatu Digital Media written by me. All opinions are 100% my own.

I want to let you in on my favorite way to shop and earn rewards for the holiday. First thing I need to do is to make a gift list of ideas for the people I need to buy something for. Now this list is not set in stone but it is a guide that tells me in which direction to go.

Say your niece wants something specific. Well I don’t just go to the store, I head on over to Kroger’s where I purchase a gift card for that. Hence, I call this double dipping. Double dipping because I get double the rewards. I get 4x the gas points just for buying gift cards at Kroger. I then go down the list and do the same thing for each person. But say I get to the store and they do not have a gift card to the store I want to shop in- Then I buy a generic gift card and problem solved. This is a win win in my opinion.

This program/offer ends soon so you must hurry. This will end on 12/11/18. Earn 4X Fuel Points when you purchase gift cards at Kroger. See store for details. Find a store near you! http://j.mp/2y8uZRC Gift Cards vary from store to store.

Onto The Giveaway~

1 reader will win A $50 Visa GC
Winner will be chosen at random and notified by email if chosen.
Must be 18 years of age or older to enter
Void where prohibited by law.

ENTER BELOW AND GOOD LUCK TO YOU~

a Rafflecopter giveaway

John Paul #Pet #Dog Lavender Mint Shampoo & Conditioning Spray #Review #HGG18

2018 Holiday Gift Guide, Reviews · November 20, 2018

I received the below mentioned complimentary product either for free or a discounted price for the purpose of this post. All opinions and thoughts are 100% my own.

How do you bathe your dog? Ever since Sam(our 14 yr old 150 pd large breed German Shepard) passed, I never thought I would have another dog but it was so hard on the kids that we had to give in. So now we are the proud pet parents of Zola- a chocolate lab. The difference between her and Sam is that Zola loves getting a bath and Sam not so much. I was thrilled when the opportunity came about to review shampoo and conditioner from JOHN PAUL PET.

About John Paul Pet~

John Paul DeJoria is a first-generation American turned entrepreneur, philanthropist and pillar of the business community. He has struggled against the odds not only to achieve success, but to share his success with others, always living his motto: “Success unshared is failure.”
In 2011, John Paul signed Bill Gates and Warren Buffet’s “The Giving Pledge” as a formal promise to continue giving back. The same year, he established JP’s Peace, Love & Happiness Foundation as a hub for his charitable investments, which support the core values of his companies: sustainability, social responsibility and animal-friendliness.

My Review/Thoughts~

I have never been the type to cut corners when it comes to my pets. My pets are family and I treat them like family be it their food, toys or bathing products. That is why I turn to John Paul Pet for all of my pet needs. Their products are out of this world and my pets even like the smell. Lavender Mint is one of their news products to date and we just got to try it. As a pet parent, I only recommend products that are awesome and work.