We all know that feeling- the dull ache in the back of your head, the itchy nose, and the tickle in your throat. I woke up to all those on Sunday morning, but refused to name it. By Tuesday, I was waving the white flag and admitting I had a cold. I have zero energy and appetite by this time, but thankfully, I had received a complimentary bundle of Greens Plus superfood powders and energy bars to try and I am really thankful I did!

When Love, Hallmark sent out an email to their blogger group asking if we’d like to work on this campaign, I practically begged them to pick me to review and host a giveaway. Thankfully, my “enthusiastic” email was rewarded and I am honored to present the Hallmark 2015 Keepsake ornament giveaway for the flying Ace! While I did receive this ornament free of charge to thank me for my time, my love of all things Peanuts, and most especially Snoopy,  are 100% my own. 

My family and I aren’t alone in our love of the Peanuts gang.  Young and old alike love all things Peanuts- but when Snoopy becomes The Flying Ace, something magical happens. That magical essence has been lovingly captured in this Hallmark keepsake ornament. 

Jim Kemme, the Hallmark Keepsake artist who worked on this piece missed no detail. The grimace on the Flying Ace’s face, the perfect shade of red on the plane, the goggles and cap, all work brilliantly to help us root on the Flying Ace as he races to save the day! When duty and adventure calls, he’s up, up and away!  You can learn more about the artist and the ornament by visiting Hallmark here. 

This ornament has an extra element of cool because with the push the button you will hear the Flying Ace sound off!  The batteries are included when you purchase or win it- but be warned, getting the batteries in is tricky! You’ll need a small screwdriver to open the back and a bit of patience as you jockey both button batteries into place. Dexterity will prevail and you’ll hear the Flying Ace take off in no time!

If you love the Peanuts gang, Hallmark invites you to enter to win a hometown screening of the new Peanuts movie for you and 300 of your closest friends and neighbors!  Hurry! This sweeps ends October 31, 2015! 



Win The Flying Ace Keepsake Ornament:

With two weeks to go until Halloween arrives, Americans coast to coast are gearing up for this fun filled night in a big way. At our house, we still need to carve our pumpkins and find a few more accessories for our costumes, but we will be ready to celebrate in style! Yes, we do have to drive to celebrate now that we live in a rural area, but there is fun to be found in neighborhoods all around us.  As a matter of fact, Nashville, TN. made the list for top 20 cities for trick-or-treaters compiled by Zillow. 

This map shows the top 10 cities. Zillow says they picked areas with the greatest share of their residents are under 15 and the houses are closest together. That would help explain why San Francisco tops their list for the 5^th year in a row! 

Another way these cities made the cut was by giving out the most candy to all those cute goblins! Speaking of candy, do you know that the average kids gets at least 50 pieces of candy on Halloween? Some kids have reported getting more than 100 pieces! I know we gave out and received a huge amount of candy each year we lived in suburbia, maybe that helped Nashville, TN. make the top 20 list! 

How did your city do? Are there any surprises on the list? I was delighted to see Milwaukee on the list. Can you imagine all those brave parents and kids bundling up against the cold to go trick-or-treating? Way to go! Please stop by Zillow to read all the fun facts on how they came up with their top 20 list and see the in depth neighborhood breakdowns. 

From our home to yours, we wish you a happy, safe, and fun Halloween!

Football season is heating up all over the country and here at Casa Kinsman, you can hear us cheering touchdown on Saturday and Sunday afternoons as we root for the VOLS and the Titans. If football fever has struck you family too, you’ll want to take a look at this crowd pleaser of a meal I served this weekend- Easy Pollo Verde Tacos with sides and Guacamole. True Game Day Favorites!

If you’ve read my blog for long, you know I’m a fan of family dinners and tasty snacks. I try to plan out my meals for the week well ahead of time, so when I saw that Old El Paso dinner kits and Avocados from Mexico were on sale at Publix, inspiration struck and I knew I’d be serving tacos on game day. Not only would I be saving money with the dinner kits being BOGO’s, I could stock up on the best tasting Avocados in town. That is a budget touchdown!

• 2- pounds chicken breasts
• 2- 10 oz. cans Old El Paso Mild Green Enchilada Sauce  
• 1- 4.5 oz. can Old El Paso mild green chilies
• 2- small gloves garlic
• ½ large yellow onion
• ½ cup water
• 1- tablespoon Canola oil
• Salt/Pepper to taste
• 10- Old El Paso soft taco size tortilla’s (from soft taco dinner kit).
• Red Taco Sauce (from soft taco kit).
• Cilantro for garnish