Chex Holiday Recipes & Giveaway

I LOVE cereal and so does my entire family. I confess though, I always thought of Cereal as breakfast food. I was more than surprised when I explored the joint venture by Kroger and Chex Cereal and discovered a lot of recipes for holiday entertaining that are easy on time as well as budget using cereal as the base.

For instance, did you know there are so many great tasting Chex Party Mix recipes that can be made in the microwave in only 15 minutes?! For example, The Original Chex® Party Mix or Chex® Ginger-Honey Crunch are surefire crowd pleasers. That's not all! If you're (still!) looking for an easy gift idea for friends, family or co-workers, then make your favorite Chex Party Mix, put it in a colorful tin or bag and personalize it with your own recipe card. So easy on the budget, right?

To make things even sweeter, Kroger Family of Stores will have Chex cereal on sale so you can impress your guests without stressing your wallet. Until December 25th, Kroger will offer Chex cereal at their lowest prices of the year! So, hurry and stock up today.

I used the cereal I received for review plus the ones I got from Kroger and tried out some of the various recipes listed here. My personal favorite is the Chocolate Chex Marshmallow Clusters which were a superhit with my family :) There are tons more recipes there that you can check out.  And they're truly easy to make.

These days I begin my morning relishing the crispness and subtle flavor of Chex's health-friendly oven-roasted Corn or Rice cereal. And one of my lucky readers can enjoy them as well. Just enter the giveaway below!

Prize : Kroger "Chex Holiday Recipes" gift pack that includes two samples of Chex cereal and a $25 gift card valid at the Kroger Family of Stores.

To Enter :

• Mandatory Entry: In the comments of this post, tell me your favorite holiday recipe that uses Chex cereal. Be sure and leave your name (optional) and email address (this one's a must) with your comment.

• Bonus Entries (leave a new comment for each bonus entry that you do):
• “Like” Kroger on Facebook
• “Like” Chex on Facebook
• "Like" this blog on Facebook
• Share this giveaway on your blog, facebook or twitter(using #callmeabookworm) with a link to A Bookworm Mom's Diary and get an extra entry for each that you do daily.
• Follow this blog
• Subscribe to A Bookworm Mom's Diary Feed
• Subscribe to A Bookworm Mom's Diary Email Updates
• Comment on any non-giveaway post.
• US only

Ends:  11:59 pm Central Time on Jan 7, 2011.

Winner: will only be announced on this blog and must reply within 3 days with their full  name and address to the email address callmeabookworm at gmail dot com or else the prize is forfeit.

Don't forget to visit Kroger and Chex on Facebook to"Like" their pages and keep up with recipes, news and their latest and greatest products. While you're there, take a minute to share photos of your Chex creations.

Note - Chex and Kroger provided the author of this blog with the free product, information, and giveaway through MyBlogSpark.
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Upcoming Movie - The Lincoln Lawyer

Here's a new movie to watch out for : The Lincoln Lawyer. Based on the best-selling novel by Michael Connelly, the starcast includes Matthew McConaughey, Academy Award winner Marisa Tomei, Ryan Phillippe, Academy Award nominee William H. Macy, John Leguizamo, Josh Lucas, Michael Peña, and Emmy winner Bryan Cranston and others.

Plot Outline (from Facebook):

Mickey Haller (Matthew McConaughey) is a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney who operates out of the back of his Lincoln sedan. Haller has spent most of his career defending garden-variety criminals, until he lands the case of his career: defending Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe), a Beverly Hills playboy accused of rape and attempted murder. But the seemingly straightforward case suddenly develops into a deadly game of survival for Haller.

Looks like a good one to me, although I have to wonder if Matt will do justice to the role? His track record doesn't leave me very convinced. I'll waiting for the March 18, 2011 release date to see what the crictics make of it. How about you?
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Healthy Women

Caring for someone (or more than one someone) is the most rewarding and at the same time, one of the most challenging jobs around. For it not only involves love, but also patience, forgiveness, and so much more. In most families, Moms are the primary caregivers. From making lunches to paying the household bills, it's constantly one thing after another. Believe me, it's a tough job. Which is made even tougher if a woman has a disability or cares for someone with a disability like Epilepsy. Ordinary chores can become hurdles as they deal with diagnoses, treatments, and other issues alongside their daily lives.

On the heels of National Epilepsy Awareness month in November, HealthyWomen.org created the "Women Succeeding with Epilepsy" video series, sponsored by UCB, Inc., to educate and inspire women dealing with the challenges of living or caring for someone with epilepsy. In the series, one woman tells the story of caring for her son with epilepsy while another woman shares her experience of living with epilepsy since she was a teenager.

I watched a couple of these videos myself and I was so moved. These are real videos about real people facing life with a smile despite their disability and they so do with style and compassion. It's truly inspiring to hear their real life experiences from the actual persons themselves. I encourage you to visit the website and watch these videos. There are resources available to educate yourself and those around you about the symptoms, causes, prevention and treatment of epilepsy. The site also has information about a variety of other health topics and a nice selection of Healthy tips including those for Supporting Someone Living With Epilepsy which I've posted below. Here's the link.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of HealthyWomen’s “Women Succeeding with Epilepsy” sponsored by UCB, Inc. and received a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.
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10 Tips for Supporting Someone Living With Epilepsy

Supporting a child …

Mom often takes on many roles in the family—caretaker, health care decision maker and cheerleader. If you have a son or daughter living with epilepsy, you’ll often take on all three. Laying a strong foundation for your child, while still taking care of oneself, can be challenging. These tips can help:

1. Communication is key. Nurture an environment of openness. It’s important to have a candid dialogue about your child’s condition, so they feel comfortable coming to you with any feelings or concerns. Talking about what it means for them is important, as is talking to others about what it means for you. Also, letting neighbors, coaches, teachers, school officials and other important people know is key to fostering a team approach.

2. Make informed decisions. Start by choosing the right health care professional. Give your child the best possible chance for success by seeking care from a specialist who is familiar with epilepsy, such as a neurologist or epileptologist. Do your research and ask lots of questions. If you don’t feel comfortable from the beginning, keep looking.

3. Guide your child toward activities where success is most likely. It’s easy to see your child’s strengths. Encourage them to participate in activities where their skills will be best utilized. For example, partaking in an individual sport rather than a team one may offer significant benefits. Also, by giving your child responsibilities and allowing him or her to make or contribute to important decisions, you’ll be empowering your youngster to be his or her own advocate one day.

4. Remember: To care for someone else, you need to take care of yourself first. You know when you’re on an airplane and they say to secure your oxygen mask first? Same idea here—you can’t help your family if you aren’t taking care of yourself. Make sure to schedule some time for self‐care, relaxation and nurturing other important relationships in your life. Also, it helps to have a support network of other parents caring for children with epilepsy. You can find resources for this at www.EpilepsyAdvocate.com.

5. Always be prepared. Create an action plan so that you’re ready if a seizure occurs. That includes always carrying important phone numbers and any necessary medications.

Supporting another adult …

Do you have a friend, coworker, spouse, parent or sibling living with epilepsy?
Maybe you want to be supportive but aren’t sure how. These tips can help:

6. Talk openly. By normalizing conversation about epilepsy and seizures, your friend or loved one will feel more comfortable talking about their concerns and fears. Also, don’t be afraid to express your own feelings as well. Witnessing a seizure can be scary—if it happens to you, talk about it.

7. Do your homework. Learn what you can do in the event of a seizure by asking a medical professional, doing research and talking to the person who has epilepsy. Visit www.epilepsyfoundation.org/about/firstaid to read their tips on first aid for seizures. Also, it helps to understand terminology and to know what resources and support options are available.

8. Be a cheerleader and advocate. Stay optimistic and celebrate seizure control and important milestones. Educate those around you and encourage them to get involved with epilepsy awareness.

9. Offer to go to important medical appointments. Your friend or loved one may want some extra support or someone to take notes about medical procedures or other important topics. This will also allow you to be a solid sounding board for confusing medical decisions. In addition, people with
epilepsy may not recall what happens during a seizure, so caregivers should try to communicate that information to the physician.

10. Carry important phone numbers with you. Whether it’s for specific doctors, local hospitals or other loved ones, always be able to contact the people who you may need or want informed of any given situation.

Women Succeeding with Epilepsy is sponsored by UCB, Inc. For more information on living with epilepsy and video accounts of real women’s stories, visit www.HealthyWomen.org/epilepsy and www.EpilepsyAdvocate.com.

This post is part of the Healthy Women blog tour campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of HealthyWomen’s “Women Succeeding with Epilepsy” sponsored by UCB, Inc.
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