Fried Ravioli's: Dinner Made Easy

We are kind of burnt out on the same old pasta dinners. Spaghetti, lasagna, and Alfredo. To be honest, I tried ravioli's a few times and I just couldn't seem to get over the fact that I chased them around my plate and the texture was just a little too--slippery for me. My husband didn't particularly care for them either.

Actually, while we're being honest, he is completely over spaghetti as well. Chalk it up to poor college students living off of it for too long I guess.

I was given Fried Ravioli's at a friends party one night and to be honest, before I politely took a bite, I was haunted by that weird texture and experience by the last time I'd eaten one. BUT--this was a wonderfully pleasant surprise!

So much, that I decided to make them myself! Even my spaghetti-skeptic husband was thrilled!

How easy are these to make? Well, my four year old can make them (he can prep them-I don't allow him to cook with the hot oil.).

What you need:

1 Bag Store Bought Ravioli's (any kind)
Italian Breadcrumbs
Whole Milk or Heavy Cream

Take the ravioli's and dip them into the milk/cream.

Cover with Italian bread crumbs.

Fried 1-3 minutes on each side in hot oil, until golden brown.

Serve with marinara sauce.

See-I told you it was easy!


Check out my other easy recipes!

Sloppy Cheeseburgers

Easy Spinch & Chicken Pizza

Carmel Apple Cider

Feeding The People, Children's Ministry Lesson

With the holidays upon us, we are very into the giving spirit! But then again, we do that year round.

We love to give and serve. By doing this we really show each other what love is.

I feel, you're never too young to start.

I thought this lesson was really fun! We used the story of Jesus Feds 5,000 people.
We used Matthew 14:13-21 (NLT)

Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
That evening the disciples came to him and said, "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves."
But Jesus said, "That isn't necessary - you feed them."
"But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!" they answered.
"Bring them here, he said.
Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples who distributed it to the people.
They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelves baskets of leftovers.
About 5,000 men were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children!

I had baked a whole bunch of sugar cookies to bring to class to be decorated and handed out. (A few to be eaten as a snack as well!)

Each of the children decorated about 3-5 cookies each.

After each cookie was decorated, we prayed over the cookies and blessed them.

Then, just as the disciples started to hand out the food that Jesus had given, the children had to pick people to hand the cookies out too, after class.

They couldn't all be handed out to one family member, but each child choose a few different people in the church to pass out their goodies too!

Everyone was blessed by the kind outreach of the children! Like I said, never too early to start!

If you've enjoyed this lesson, like we did, check out some of my other children's lessons!

Lamb of God Craft

Finding Your Flock, Children's Ministry Lesson

I know it's been a long time since I've done any posting. I mean a LOOOOOOOOONG time. We've legitimately been quite busy. Good busy. Productive busy.

I've also become really involved in our amazing local church. I love it! Our kids love it! We all love it!

I have been having a lot of fun creating fun lessons for the kids. Hands on activities to help relate the stories.

Here is one that went over really, REALLY well!

Jesus is our Shepherd. We are the flock.

John 10:14-16 (NLT)
"I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me,
just as my Father knows me and I know the Father. So I sacrifice my life for the sheep."

Luke 15:3-5 (NLT)
So Jesus told them this story:
"If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won't he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it?
And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders."

After talking to the kids about Jesus being our shepherd. How a good shepherd always looks after his flock and takes care of them. Protecting them, and providing for them. If one gets lost, he always goes looking for them.

I dyed cotton balls all different colors. See below.

After the story and the discussion, I put all the different colors of cotton balls into a paper bag and let the kids each pick one.

That color "cotton ball" was actually their color of sheep. They had a "missing" herd hidden all over the room and they were in charge of going and collecting all of their lost sheep.

The kids really enjoyed finding them, and not only that, they really took care to help out one another.

After all the sheep had been collected, we played a few more games with them sheep.

We played "Popcorn Sheep." Where all the sheep get tossed into the air, and everyone has to gather their sheep as fast as they can.

We also had a little relay where we put the sheep at one end of the room and their cups or "homes" at the other end. They were allowed to race each other and only pick up one sheep at a time and bring it home.

After you play all the games of finding your herds of sheep, follow up with the questions of what a shepherd is and does, and how Jesus is our amazing shepherd.

Hope you've enjoyed this lesson!

Check out the other kids ministry lessons I've got on my blog!

You have the POWER!

Prayer Excitment

Lamb of God Craft

Breaking the Chains in Jesus' Name: Children's Ministry Lesson/Craft

I've really started to get involved with my local church and I absolutely love it. I've never felt better, and more secure about who I am and what I am supposed to be doing.

As David once said, "One day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I'd rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God, than live the good life in the homes of the wicked." (Psalm 84:10 NLT)

Serving in the Children's Ministry, just helps me to keep my focus and priority on God. I love him, and this is how I can show him that I do. I can serve his people with gladness.

Ok, so with that, I was blessed with this idea about using Jesus Name to Break the Chains in our lives.

Have you ever heard that song Break Every Chain, by Jesus Culture? You should. Click on the title for the YouTube link. For me, I find it to be a very powerful song.

Lyrics to the Song

There is power in the name of Jesus, to break every chain! Powerful, isn't it! Praise the Lord for that ability! Can you ever learn that soon enough?

I wanted to teach the children about being able to use the power and authority of Jesus name. How we, as believers, are more than over comers.

There are so many bible verses to look at where it talks about using Jesus name for power and authority. I chose these two as an example, and yes, there are more and probably better ones to use, but I chose these two.

I have really started to enjoy looking at the meanings of words. Especially in how they apply to the bible. I looked up the the English and Greek words for power and defined them.

Each kid, got a copy of all three of these items. We read them aloud and discussed them as a class. I wanted them to understand how to apply this to them. I remember when I was younger, that I would read something and sometimes I never really took the time to understand what it was I actually read. Then other times, I just kind of sat puzzled at what I had just read and then dismissed looking into it further.

After we had talked about the verse and what it means to have the power to use Jesus name, we then applied it to breaking the chains!

We made up 20 paper chains before hand (we used craft glue to hold them together, because we thought staples might pose a cut risk).

We handed all the kids a few strands of chains, and had them name something they wanted broken off of their life. For example, one was afraid of the dark.

With his chain in hand we said together with him, "I break the chain of fear in the name of Jesus," and then he pulled apart the chain.

Of course, with kids, just pulling it apart isn't enough, they had to completely rip the chain to shreds. Which was completely fine by me!!!

BTW-If you LOVE the shirt, check out Sweet Pea ala Mode's shop!!!!

After all the chains had been broken we took all the remnants and threw them up in the air like party confetti! We just celebrated the fact that we had destroyed the chains and burdens in our lives. What an awesome day!

We all had such a wonderful time, and I hope that if you can use this activity and event for your church, that you enjoy it as much as we did!

Let me know if you enjoyed this, or have ideas to make them better! I love being able to share with all of you!

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Need other Children's Ministry Ideas? See Below!

Lamb of God Craft

I've Changed My Mind

Over the past year, well, really two years, I've been under going a caterpillar like transformation.

I've become an adult. Like, a real one. Having children, buying a house, being married-the whole package. Um, reverse that order.

I've also learned that I've got incredible power and strength. I've found out that I'm an amazing person. I'm not saying this to sound arrogant or proud, I'm saying this because it's true of all of us!

I noticed during the beginning parts of being a mom, when all those sleepless nights seemed to drag on for weeks, months and even years, that I just kind of was lost.

I felt at times, I wanted to be joyful, but found myself being hateful and jealous instead.

I would see photos of other people on family vacations on Facebook, and as much as I wanted to be happy for them, I just sat there and was just so jealous!

Jealous is an evil thing. No good comes from it. I am a big runner, so let me put this analogy into a form that I can relate.

When I found myself in jealous feelings and thought, I realized that, for me, it was like running circles around a track. The two mile, or even the one mile run around the track, just kind of sucked for me. 

The two mile was always the first even at our track meets. This event always seemed to be the one no one cared about, and honestly, I always kind of felt like someone was just kind of laughing at me as I would pass them and do laps.

Just like a track, running circles in a hamster wheel gets you no where.

Jealous is a lot like that-you keep circling around and around and around. You keep seeing the same things and keep feeling the same things and it never gets better. You're in the unloved event. Sometimes it seems like it's the most pointless two miles ever. 

Every once in a while, you'd have a friend try and cheer you on for a few laps, but they never really stayed for the whole course. I can't say I blame them. It gets old.

So does feeling and thinking jealously.

I've learned on those days, when I was running around the jealousy track, that Bitterness and Hate would always show up to be my only cheerleaders. The Enemy at his finest. You know, when that's who you have cheering you on, you find that you will run yourself into the ground. When you cross the finish line and turn back to look at them, they're both just standing there clapping their hands, laughing at you. See it doesn't bother Bitterness or Hate. In fact, they loved it! They knew the longer you circled around that track and them, the worse off you'd feel when you finally stopped, and they knew exactly how you'd affect everyone else in your life because of it.

They're really sneaky. 

I was absolutely tired of letting something so small and insignificant steal my joy. Besides, there will always be someone who has a "nicer" house, "better" car, "more talent," and so on and so forth.

Besides stealing my joy about life, I noticed that I was poisoning my relationships around me. I wasn't being thankful for the amazing job my God does at providing for us. I wasn't thankful to husband for all his hard work, that he does every day.

I needed to start transforming my mind! I found Dr. Caroline Leaf's program-The 21 Day Brain Detox. Wow! I watched this video on her first, and I was just floored. She explains amazing scientific discoveries in a very simple way!

The toxic thoughts we have in our brains, like jealousy, hate and all the rest of the negative junk, affect our brains AND bodies in a negative way! But, we as amazing, God created beings, can actually change the way we think!! We are not victims about how our brain thinks, WE CONTROL OUR BRAINS! Not the other way around.

I thought, "This is exactly what I need!" I started this program two months ago and I have absolutely noticed a huge difference!

I have been able to completely kill of those thoughts of jealousy. I have noticed that I am so much happier for EVERYONE! Including myself.

I can see people that get a new home and think, "That's just so awesome for them! They totally needed it!"

Someone else gets a new job I can easily say, "I'm so thankful that God blessed them and they have something so wonderful!" And most importantly, I sincerely mean all of those things. I can say it with a heart filled smile. It isn't generic. It is genuine.

Day by day, with her program I totally started to see myself killing all these nasty things.

Again, using a running analogy, I ran cross country as well. With feelings and thoughts of Jealousy, it was like running two miles around a circle track. You never went anywhere. You just finished and felt tired and exhausted and just "Eh."

But, after starting and finishing this program, I noticed that it was a lot like a cross country race. I may have run two miles, but I got to see so many cool things along the way. 

Beautiful possibilities of countryside.

Sometimes, when I was running, I would find myself so amazed at the landscape that it was hard not to be drawn to the beauty of the countryside. Or laugh at a cow that you'd just passed by!

In cross country races you'd find yourself running up and downhills, around buildings, going here there every where! Kind of like a Dr. Seuss book. I remembered when I finished the race I had such a sense of accomplishment and it was always fun to see all the different people cheering you on! No one got bored watching you run circles, no-your friends would run to keep up with you! They'd race around the track to keep cheering you on.

When you were done, you were smiles. You knew where you started and you knew exactly how far you'd gone. 

That's what this program does. It takes you on a journey-it helps you conquer your hills and it cheers you on along the way. I makes you enjoy the journey and discover things along the way that make you realize how awesome and how much power you really have!

Additionally, you help to change the people around you. When you start to become a non-jealous person, filled with positive thoughts, you attract more people to you. People who want that feeling too!

I'm already almost done with my second toxic thought and I can't wait to just keep continuing my positive journey! Life doesn't seem to be the rat race it once was. I have an incredible sense of peace now. Joy. God has truly blessed me and my family! I have fully started to appreciate all his Glory and Wonder for our lives and those around us! What an amazing thing to feel.

If you are struggling with these same types of thoughts, try this program! I promise you, you will see the difference in your life!!!  This might be one of those things that I need to "giveaway," on my blog, because this is really what my life and journey on here has been all about.

Be the change that needs to happen. Be the change for someone else. Let's help each other!

Have you had thoughts that you've struggled with that just affect your whole life? Your relationships? Do you ever just feel tired of thinking and feeling that way? 

I'd love to hear your stories or comments. Have you heard of her program and tried it?

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We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV)


Please feel free to check out some of my other posts!

Children's Ministry: Jesus Gets Excited When We Pray!

Looking for some fun lessons for teaching children (and getting them excited!) about Jesus, can kind of be difficult. Especially when you have children in your classroom that can range in age from three months to almost 6th grade.

I found this on Pinterest- Fizzy Forgiveness Prayer Station.

What I really loved about this was the fact that you can take something relatively easy to find (fizzy tablets) and turned it into something really cool!

Kids LOVE fizz. Even I as an adult, feel child like exuberance when I see fizz. There is something just so awesome about effervescence. 

I took this fizz idea and made it my own. Sometimes to come up with a cool idea, we just need a little help from above-and others!

My lesson was to teach children about prayer. I don't think you can stress enough, the importance of building a strong relationship with our Lord. Prayer does this along with reading His word.

Welcome to the lesson of:
 "Jesus Gets Excited When You Pray!"

I used 1 Timothy 2:1-6 (NLT). I wanted to stress that Jesus hears all prayers, not just prayers that come from adults, and we should pray for everyone!

Also, I wanted the children to understand what praying actually means. I looked up and printed out the definition, and some easier words, to help describe what it means to pray.

After we took turns reading and discussion what prayer means and how it applies to the verse I showed the kids what happens when we pray.

I used two glasses and filled them with some regular tap water and for extra "fizz" some sparkling water.

I went to our local City Market and bought these Alka Seltzer generic tablets. We got 30 tables for roughly $2. I wanted to make sure we had enough for two child, at the very least.

I allowed the children to pick what color we would make the water-they chose green, purple. My children at home chose orange.

I had them gather around and I said, "Tell me how this makes you feel." I dropped a tablet into the water and it immediately began to fizz.

The excitement on their faces was extremely evident and also, they said it was pretty cool.

I asked them if it was exciting to watch the fizz, and they all said, "Yes!"

I told them, that every time we pray to Jesus, that's how he feels. He feels excited, because we're building a relationship with him. We're talking to him, we're including him in our lives. Jesus loves us so much and he wants to be a part of our lives.

I handed each kid two tablets (there are two in each pack) and said that each one of us could pray together for someone or about something in their lives. I also gave them personal discretion that if they didn't feel comfortable praying out loud, we would just pray in agreement silently with them.

To watch the kids pray with excitement was just amazing! I know it partly had to do with the fizzy tablets they got to play with, but we also got to watch them gain understanding that praying is a good thing. Praying can be fun!

If it's fun to go to the movies, shouldn't it be fun to spend time praying to God too? I think so!

Also, I told the kids, after we had gotten into a few prayers, that we needed to be quiet and listen. They could hear the fizzing noise in action. I said sometimes that's how God works. He answers our prayers, but sometimes we have to be quiet and listen. God is a gentleman and he never forces us to do anything.

At the end of the class, I allowed the kids to save up their fizzes and they all dropped their remaining ones in together to see if they could over flow the water (which of course they managed to do! I'm pretty sure that was the one silent prayer we had!!).

We finished up the lesson with another coloring page from TwistyNoodle! I mentioned them before in our Lamb of God lesson we did over Resurrection Sunday.

I hope you found this fun and can some how use it to teach your kids about how awesome and amazing Jesus Christ is!

Just an FYI-I have a few left over tablets and I kept the orange glass out for our kids, and when they pray I let them drop a fizz into the water. 

Make sure to monitor your kids too! If you use the alka seltzer tablets, make sure they don't eat them or drink the water that you use. I'm not sure what exactly could happen, but we don't need to try to imagine it either!

Have fun sharing and learning about God! I'd love to hear your ideas or how you've incorporated this into your own lessons and teaching!

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Colorado Summer Staycation/Bucket List

We're a family of four. Two little ones and two adults. We have crossed over the line in flights, where there are no more "free" lap children in our homes. If you've never flown this means, that each seat we buy will cost us at least $300(+) to go some where. (There are no discounts for children.)

Like a lot of other families, we're sticking close to home. 

We live in Colorado and there is so much to do here! Even as an adult that has lived here for over ten years, I still haven't even scratched the surface of exploring our state and all it has to offer! 

This summer I kind of had a "bucket list" of things to do and experience with the kids. I even have a few "wish list" ideas I'd love to experience with my husband. I have girls weekend ideas also.

A few of these are pretty simple, and some of them just need a little bit more logistical planning. But, none the less, if you're thinking of coming to Colorado, and aren't sure where to go or start, look at a few of my ideas for what to do while you're here!

There are always the same big ideas that come to mind when you think of Colorado vacation-white water rafting, zoos, aquariums, mountains, fishing and camping.

Here are ones that I'd love to do with the kids:

Fishing. (I know, easy isn't it?)

Take a train ride. There are a few different places in the state that you can accomplish this. You can always get a ticket on AmTrack, or you can do a fun mountain ride all over Colorado using one of these amazing railroad companies: Leadville Colorado & Southern Railroad, Royal Gorge Route Railroad, Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, and Georgetown Loop Railroad.

We are so lucky to have so many unique locations for railroad rides! Even in the fall and winter months, a few of these trains provide amazing views and one even does a "Polar Express" ride! (When the kids are a few years older, we'll take them on that Polar Express Excursion. That movie/book is one of their favorites!)

Mountain Tram rides with a possible cave tour. We've never taken our kids up on top of the mountains. We've driven around them and looked at all the fall foliage, but we've never experienced a gondola/tram ride with them.

We have several that are very close to us, and one that offers a cool cave tour as well! Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park is a really, REALLY cool place to check out. Take a tram ride up to the top and check out the amazing cave tour that promises stalactites and stalagmites galore! Plus, no matter what time of year it is, it's always a consistent temperature of 52 degrees, year round!

They also have an assortment of thrill rides that include an Alpine Coaster (that you can ride with your three year old!), and the Cliffhanger Roller Coaster, which happens to be the highest elevation roller coaster in North America!

Visit the Zoo and Aquarium! The kids loved this last year. So did I, actually. But, this year, we've vowed to NOT go over the Fourth of July, when it's 100 degrees out. The animals don't really do anything when it is that hot out and neither do humans. While we visited Denver Zoo last year, this year we are hoping to check out The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, in Colorado Springs. We have heard so many wonderful things about this zoo, and it's only $2 to feed the giraffes! (I LOVE giraffes, so I will definitely be spending the extra $2 to partake in this awesome experience!)

We only have one aquarium here in Colorado and our experience with it last year wasn't great, we visited the Downtown Denver Aquarium. But that was mostly because again, it was over Fourth of July, it was unbelievably packed and someone should have told us NOT to bring in our double jogging stroller. The kids couldn't move in and out between the people and, honestly, neither could we. So, we pushed through all the exhibits so quickly because we couldn't see that we didn't really enjoy it.

This year, I'm planning for a different day and time, and NO stroller! 

Bowling. Yea, that one seems a little weird doesn't it? But, I live in the desert. It can easily be 100 degrees here in the afternoon, and 90 degrees by nine o'clock in the morning. With little shade, and it highly advised that between 11 a.m and 4 p.m. we avoid a lot of direct sun for significant period of times.

Bowling is an indoor activity that still requires you to do some actions, and honestly, I loved doing this as a child! I also loved roller skating as a child, and we have a new roller skating rink that is opening up here that I am super excited to try out for date night!! Who else remembers skate-dancing in the 80's????

That for right now pretty much sums up my "kids" to do list. I also have a "parents" one as well.

While we are off doing a lot of these things for us and the kids to enjoy, we also try to plan for things for us as well.

What are some of those things on that list? We LOVE watching Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Last year, as we planned our trip to Denver, we also looked up a few of these Triple D visited restaurants. You can check it out by state, so if you're road tripping any where, you can plan your breakfast, lunch and dinner stops accordingly. 

While our youngest had just turned 1, we still wanted it to be fun for all of us. My husband and I honestly had a wonderful time doing this!! The kids were happy with whatever they had, but we got a chance to experience some food that was really fun and funky at times! I think that was probably the best part of our vacation last year, for him. He enjoyed himself so much that this year, he actually talks about going to a few new places to try out their famous specials.

Pro Baja Truck Rental. Ok, this is definitely more for my husband, but I just wanted to show you how extremely diverse Colorado was. Down at Gateway Canyons Resort, they offer a one of a kind Baja Truck Rental experience that can only be found in the likes of other places like California, or Las Vegas. This is a one of a kind experience that is sure to bring a smile to every man's face. (as long as he enjoys this type of high thrill activity!)

Spa Day. Yea, mom is usually really pretty easy! A fun, relaxing spa day with an outdoor massage, facial and total pampering (followed by lunch and long deserved, non disturbed nap) with a friend or three would be the perfect way to help celebrate a day of vacation/staycation!

This list could literally go on forever and ever, depending on the towns you pick to visit and additional things you choose to add on to it. The biggest thing to remember when it comes to summer vacation/staycations to allow extra time for everything and try not to pack it full. Sometimes the best part of the adventure is just enjoying the moments you find yourself in. Even when you don't stick to the schedule.

Life is about enjoying the time you have with the people you're given. Not about how much stuff you squeeze in. Some of my favorite memories with people I love, happened with the weirdest, unplanned, accidents/incidents. Like taking a bus and getting lost in a different part of town. Finding yourself at a restaurant that was closed and searching for something fun and better instead. Finding yourself in a different part of the world, because you allowed yourself just to have fun and go with it. Trust God, he knows how to have a GREAT time on a family vacation!!

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Romans 15:13 ESV



I'd love to hear some of your summer Colorado favorites for families!

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Don't forget your children's Passport!

Leave some love where ever you go!

Flying with Kids!

Cascade Platinum Review & Contest

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Cascade. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating. There are links within this blog post back to Cascade and to Mom Central Consulting.

I'm a firm believer in not treating my dishwasher like it is a garbage disposal. I do this for the simple fact that it is indeed called a DISH-WASHER, not a garbage disposal.

I've been to homes of people who feel that it is OK to leave that loaf of bread on the plate while it enters their dishwasher. Or that uneaten fat of the steak.

I'm not sure why they think this, but they do. 

I also, have always been a "rinser," when it comes to my dishes. Honestly, I'm not even entirely sure why, but I do. 

I think it stems from the early years of dishwashers and how the detergent and water flow maybe never performed quite the way it does now.

Which leads me to my actual post-I got to try out some of those new Cascade Platinum Pacs!!

I have definitely evolved over time. Starting first with powder when it came out for our dishwasher. Then the cool "gel" appeared on the store shelves and we moved to using that. The latest has been the pac movement. You've seen them for your dishwasher and your laundry, no doubt.

It's quick and simple. No squeezing, eyeballing, overfilling, or dripping of the dishwasher gel anymore. Just pop a pac and go. Pretty simple.

But then, Cascade went and did something even more awesome-they took those pacs and made it clean your dishes and your dishwasher AT THE SAME TIME!! (If you're not applauding right now, then you've never smelt a nasty dishwasher before.....)

What are some of the benefits of using the Cascade Platinum Pacs you ask?? Let me tell you!

• Scrubs away 24-hour stuck on food
• Eliminates the need to pre-rinse dishes
• Helps maintain the new look of machines
• Helps prevent additional hard water build up
• Delivers exceptional dishware shine
• Uses Dawn Dish Soap power

How did it perform for me? Let me show you.

After

Before

Before

After

OK, the top photo doesn't really do it justice, but I resolved to NOT pre-rinse these dishes. Doing this was a little difficult for me. I had to "break out of the mold," so to speak.

The True Love plate had peanut butter on it. While the peanut butter was reduced, it wasn't eliminated. The Cascade Platinum Pacs worked well on just about everything else. But, as always, peanut butter seems to be the exception to every rule! So, pre-rinse peanut butter, unless it is a light layer.

How did my dishwasher look? Amazing!!

My dishwasher is over 5 years old, and it was really gross. The dishwasher had a lot of hard water stains. But, after a few uses, you could see the difference in a cleaner machine!

I like to use an item a lot before I give an honest review of it. What are my thoughts-these little guys are great! I've always been a user of Cascade. It has a been a brand, for me, that has proven itself over and over again. I believe, with the except of peanut butter, that I didn't have to scrub rinse my dishes, and they turned out sparkling clean. That will be saving me all the extra water and time I used to spend before loading the dishwasher. If you're wondering if they are a good product, they have my vote! I plan to purchase these after, they are all gone.

How much are these awesome little guys?
A 14-pac (the one I got) runs around $4.29, in cost. Roughly around $0.30 a load. Not too bad, and remember-it cleans your machine too! Doing double duty for the same price! No need to buy a separate cleaner for the machine. This is a money saver!!

Speaking of money, did you also know that Cascade is running a giveaway?!

Click on the link below to win one of their awesome prizes! Or check out their Facebook Page, by clicking on the link here.

The Cascade #MyPlatinum contest is a four-week Instagram contest encouraging fans to upload photos related to the weekly contest themes. Show off how sparkly Cascade makes all your pots, pans and plates!

#Myplatinum Instagram Contest!

Show Us YOUR Sparkle & Win!

So show us how sparkly Cascade^® makes all YOUR pots, pans, plates, glassware and silverware!

Enter^† Cascade's #MyPlatinum Instagram Contest for a chance to win a KitchenAid^® Kitchen Makeover and a 1-year supply of Cascade^®! Weekly entries have a chance to win aKitchenAid^® Dishwasher and six-month supply of Cascade^®too!

I enjoy instagramming some of our meals. By using Cascade Platinum and some of Top Chef judge and editor of Food+Wine magazine, Gail Simmons suggestions, showing off our delicious dishes are made even more appealing! To see what else Gail has to offer about food and tips, visit Cascade's Facebook page. Watch a few videos and learn how to apply some simple tips to your every day dishes!

Hope you've enjoyed my review and I also hope you're signed up for the contest! Enjoy!