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ENDED – WINNERS LISTED: Book Review & Giveaway: Ah-CHOO! The Uncommon Life of Your Common Cold – ends 8/31/10

CONGRATULATIONS TO COMMENTS # 6, 30, 33 (Delle, Jennifer & Marc) please send me you mailing addresses using the form above in the tabbed navigation that says PR/Contact Information so I can forward you names to the sponsors!! You will have 48 hours from 9.1.10 12.00am to get this information to me or another name will be drawn in your place.

Thanks to Hachette Book Group, I have been given the opportunity to review and give away 3 copies of the book “Ah-CHOO! The Uncommon Life of Your Common Cold by Jennifer Ackerman.

“What do you know about the common cold?  Probably a lot less than you think.

Some colds are like mice, timid and annoying; others like dragons, accompanied by body aches and deep misery. In AH-CHOO!, Jennifer Ackerman explains what, exactly, a cold is, how it works, and whether it’s really possible to “fight one off.” Scientists call this the Golden Age of the Common Cold because Americans suffer up to a billion colds each year, resulting in 40 million days of missed work and school and 100 million doctor visits. They’ve also learned over the past decade much more about what cold viruses are, what they do to the human body, and how symptoms can be addressed. In this ode to the odious cold, Ackerman sifts through the chatter about treatments-what works, what doesn’t, and what can’t hurt. She dispels myths, such as susceptibility to colds reflects a weakened immune system. And she tracks current research, including work at the University of Virginia at Charlottesville, a world-renowned center of cold research studies, where the search for a cure continues.”

Did you know that on average we spend five years of our lives suffering from colds?  I was floored when I read that colds can actually trigger not just fevers but FAT!!  (I am forever going to blame my snot nosed kids for my big butt instead of cookies, pies and cakes… oh wait, I already tried that one…child birth!) I just recieved my copy so I haven’t gotten to read too much but so far I can tell this is going to be a very interesting and funny book!

If you would like to be one of 3 winners chosen to win yourself a copy, just leave me a comment letting me know your favorite home remedy for curing a cold. One entry per person please! (Not mandatory, but would be fun to know – especially if they are frugal and passed down from family generations.)

You may up to 2 earn bonus entries (for a total of 3 entries) One by becoming fan of FrugalQponMom and a second by becoming a fan of Hachette Book Group on and posting about entering to win this book on their Facebook wall.  Be sure you come back and leave separate comments letting me know (with your user name of course, so I will know!)

This giveaway will end on Tuesday, August 31st, 2010  Winners will have 48 hours to respond with their mailing information or another winner will be chosen

-Random Number Generator will be used to choose the winners.
-Winners chosen will be at blog owners final determination.  (I.E. – Blog owner will make the final decision on whether an entry was completed correctly or not.)
-This contests is open to U.S. and Canada ONLY.
-No P.O. Boxes, please.
-Giveaway copies will be sent directly to winners from the sponsor.

Product Spark: General Mills Cereals – (Winner Chosen)

Congratulations to Jackie for being chosen by Random.org as the winner!  Your coupons are on their way.

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Typical mornings at my house are a greeted with the alarm going off and a rush to get dressed and out the door.  Rarely do we have time to stop and have a healthy breakfast.

Recently I was given an opportunity from MyBlogSpark & General Mills to review and blog about GM Cereals.  I received 4 VIP coupons in the mail and promptly went to the store I used 2 of them.  I chose Honey Nut Cheerios & Multi Grain Cheerios because these seemed to be the healthier options for my family.   One of the things my diet seems to lack is fiber.  If my diet is lacking then I am positive my other family members aren’t getting enough either.  Cheerios contains soluble fiber and Whole Grain Oats so it is also heart healthy which is a good thing for maintaining good cholesterol levels.   I also worry about the amount of sugar in the foods I and was pleased to learn that General Mills is reducing the amount of sugar in some of their cereals, especially those geared towards children.  As for the Cheerios, I found that they only have 1 gram of sugar per serving which was amazing since they taste so good!  My kids love the Honey Nut Cheerios and the Multigrain Cheerios and that pleased me since they contain less sugar per serving than their normal cereal choices.

General Mills & MyBlogSpark have helped me realize that there are quick and NUTRITIONAL alternatives to starting the day off in a rush!  Rather than sending my kids out the door with a potential 24 grams of sugar in hand, they can have a bowl or baggie of Honey Nut Cheerios with only 9 grams of sugar and many more vitamins & minerals that they need to get through the day!  We have taken this opportunity to change some not so good habits to some great lifelong great choices.  Cheerios are a great way to start  or even end the day .

I’m off to go grab some more GM cereals for us to try next week.  I’m thinking I will grab a box of Wheaties for my hubby…he will need them for that list of “honey do’s” I will be giving him this weekend. ;-)

If  you would like to win 2 free boxes of General Mills cereals for your family to try as well, just leave me a comment with some of your favorite quick & healthy alternatives to breakfast for your family. This is a mandatory entry.  You can also earn extra entries by following me on Facebook or Twitter or by blogging or tweeting about this giveaway and commenting me with a link for a total of 5 entries.  Giveaway will end on Friday, January 29th at 11:59pm.

Good luck to you and thank you to MyBlogSpark and General Mills!

Product Review: Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters

Let me first say, I am in NO WAY affiliated with General Mills or Nature Valley – just got me a free sample in the mail and would like to give my opinion and get some feed back if you got one too -

I have always been a bit of a Granola lover so for me to say I like the Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters would be a given. I admit though, until yesterday I had not even tried them.  Being “frugal” at this point in my life keeps me from sometimes trying out new things that are not exactly “needs”.   Unless it ends up being free after a coupon I can typically resist temptation.  That is, until now.  In my mail yesterday were a few ads, a bill and a sample of Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters…and of all things, Roasted Cashew!!  Cashews…another one of my weaknesses.  Cashews are a rare treat too  since they are not a frugal food.   Okay, so at first it didn’t really faze me.  I opened the box and out fell 2 coupons, a Cranberry & Pomegranate Trail Mix Bar and the Roasted Cashew Nut Clusters.  I didn’t really even look at the flavors at the time.  Just tossed them on the table (hidden under a few things so no one snatched them away from my greedy little hands!!) for an after dinner snack.   So about an hour after dinner, I grab the package of Nut Clusters and open them up.  They weren’t what I expected.  For some reason, I guess I thought chunks of granola with little nuts mixed in would fall out.  Kind of like the hard granola bars, just crunched up.  These were different…crunchy but not to the point that it made my teeth hurt, a nutty flavor…ah yes, the Cashews!  I could not get enough of these little things.  I am going to have get more because that sample was just enough to really get my taste buds going.   I’m not sure what they cost, but this will be one of the things I keep an eye out for when it comes to sales & coupons.   They will be perfect for an on the go snack or for just sitting at home watching TV…IF they make them in a bigger bag!!  My only fear is that I will eat the whole bag in one sitting…lol.  (And yes, I ate the Trail Mix bar too…it was delicious as well but the Nut Clusters were my favorite for sure.) Two thumbs up from me!

Did you get this sample?  If so, did you like them?  I am interested in knowing what they cost…anyone find any good deals on them.  I typically shop at Kroger & CVS but will definitely go elsewhere if these are on sale!!