Generally speaking, I’m not a big fan of muesli style bars.

They just don’t appeal to me (or my kids).

A flavourless lump of cardboard laden with sugar and fat.

So when I was sent a package of these new Be Natural bars to try, I wasn’t necessarily all that enthused.

But one day when I was hungry and in a hurry, I grabbed one on my way out the door.

YUM!!!!!

These are AMAZING!!!

My favourite is the Apricot bar (LOVE apricots).  It’s chock full of nuts and seeds and the grains really just hold it all together.

My only disappointment in these is the labelling.  Because I was in a hurry I did a quick scan of the ingredients to see if they had wheat listed there.  I was pretty excited when I couldn’t find it.

Unfortunately they do actually contain wheat.  It’s listed in the ingredients as “bran cereal”.  If you read the entire packaging, it’s mentioned on the back but when you’re in a hurry, you’re used to just checking the ingredients list.  In this day and age where wheat intolerance is quite common, most companies are quite diligent in specifying wheat in their ingredients list.

Fortunately, I only have an intolerance and there wasn’t enough wheat in them to really worry me.

I won’t insult your intelligence by trying to pass these off as a “healthy snack”.  Like most bars of this type, they do contain a reasonable amount of fat and sugar.

HOWEVER, they are also nearly 1/4 nuts, taste FANTASTIC and would make an EXCELLENT substitute for a sugary treat packed with flavour and a lot more goodness than most chocolate or candy bars would give you.

You don’t have to take my word for it though.

The first 5 people to leave a comment on this post will get sent their own package of Be Natural Bars to try.

Just tell me, are you a fan of muesli style bars and why or why not?  Do you have a favourite?

P.S.  Almost forgot, you will need to be in Australia to qualify.  If you’re not, feel free to still leave a comment but we can’t send you the bars.  Sorry.

Well, the technician came and discovered a tiny little spider was playing havoc with our satellite reception so we’re back online again now (the part was nearly worn anyway so he’s also replaced it).

It’s nice to have reliable internet again.

Well, as reliable as we get out in the sticks.

I’d like to think this means I’ll be blogging more regularly now.

Problem is, life has gotten INSANELY busy and while I have plenty I’d like to say and share, finding the time and energy to do so is proving to be a challenge.

I will try my best though.

In the meantime, here are the Sultana Buds Giveaway Winners:

1.  Lynette

2.  Jo

3.  Katef

4.  Marita

5.  Katy

Could you please send me your postal address to lightening at lighteningonline dot com and I’ll get Zing to send out your prizes.  I’d love to know how they go in your family so please pop back and leave your experiences once you’ve tried them.

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for sharing your great “cheer others up” experiences.  We’re having internet troubles at the moment so I’m not able to do as much online as I would like (right now in town at the library trying to do this post quickly).  My apologies for not responding to your comments as I would like.

Recently we were sent a pack of the new Sultana Bran Buds to try.

The kids were rather excited when they arrived and wanted to try them immediately.

To be honest, I was somewhat surprised as my kids don’t like sultanas.  LOL.

But they LOVE these!!!

I’d have walked past them in the supermarket every time assuming they wouldn’t like them because of the sultana content.

The packet we were sent to try was wolfed down in a matter of days.

Followed by “can you buy some more of these mum?”

I’m kind of relieved because the younger two are painful when it comes to what cereal they like.

They’ll eat coco pops and nutra grain (and fruit loops if I’d let them) but I prefer them to have something with some sort of nutritional value for breakfast!

And from what I can gather on the nutritional panel, they have more fibre per serve than weetbix!!!

So, I’ve been offered 5 packs of these to my readers as a giveaway.

If you’d like to try them, simply leave a comment below answering either (or both) of the following questions:

1.  A creative idea for getting more fibre in your kids diet.

2.  What kinds of cereal are popular in your house?

I will announce the winners in a few days (internet willing) so don’t delay, get your comments in straight away. 

Once upon a time, a taboo subject, now more common than any of us would like to fully realise, headlice has been a problem for many, MANY a family.  When I was a kid, it was a NIGHTMARE to have headlice.  These days it has become so common it’s almost a status symbol.

It would have to be most parents worst nightmare to see their child itching and discover those tiny little brown eggs in the hair.

Most people start scratching just thinking about it!  :)  Hands up if you’re scratching right now? 

We’ve been pretty lucky with headlice so far.  Princess Singstar has had 2 outbreaks in her 4 and a bit years at school so far.  But we’ve managed to contain them to only her head and not spread them to the rest of the family.

I know people who’ve done some pretty desperate things after months and months of trying to get rid of the blighters.

What I really HATE about the whole “head-lice treatment” issue is the use of chemicals.

Farmboy tends to be a “hit em and hit em hard” type bloke (probably pretty normal).  He’d rather use chemicals than risk the spread to others and have a hard time getting them eradicated from the house.

I don’t want to put those horrible harsh chemicals on my kids HEADS.  So close to their developing BRAINS!

So, when NitWits approached me about trying their naturally based products, I was more than interested.

What really sparked my interest, upon investigating their site, was this comb:

My kids have thick hair so regular lice combs are almost impossible to get through their hair.  This one, with the longer teeth, seems to get through it a lot better.  You still need to segment the hair off but so far it’s working quite well.

Unfortunately, we haven’t actually had an outbreak of headlice to give it a try ON the lice but when we do (chances are it’ll happen again, schools seem to never get rid of it these days), I’ll let you know firsthand how it goes.

I also asked them to send me some of this:

I want to have it on hand ready in case there is another outbreak.  Naturally, I haven’t had the chance to try it out yet but there are some interesting testimonials on the website that you can read.  I know many people are skeptical about naturally based products and their effectiveness so it’s interesting to read these, particularly those who didn’t expect it to work.

Of course, prevention IS better than cure and the newest product NitWits have brought out is a Prevention Spray:

This one I have tried and I love the way it combines a detangler with the prevention ingredients to make combing out much easier.

I realise some people make their own prevention mixes but not everyone has the time or inclination to do so, so it’s good to know there is something on the market to make prevention easier.

NITWITS GIVEAWAY

To help promote their product range and get word of mouth spreading about their products, Nit Wits are offering a giveaway to readers of this site.  All you have to do is leave a comment on this post with your best tip for getting rid of headlice.  If you’ve already tried a NitWits product and would like to tell us what you think, that would be great too (I’ll give an extra entry for those).

There are 2 packs of the above 3 items to giveaway and I’ll announce the winners on Monday.

In the meantime, NitWits products are available (and cheaper) through their online shop.  Go check it out, they’re even offering FREE freight.

Thank you to all who took the time to leave a comment on my Mooo Giveaway post.  It was great reading of your enthusiasm toward their product range.

I have used a random number generator to select the giveaway winner.

And the winning number is:

Comment Number 3!

Congratulations Kelli!

Thanks again to everyone who took the time to enter.  I’ll arrange to have your 20% discount codes sent out to you ASAP (oh, and Kelli, your $50 voucher of course).

Have you seen this website with personalised clothing, labels and other fun stuff?

I’m a BIG fan of personalised stuff.  My kids love it and I find it particularly good for presents for my nieces and nephews if I’m not sure what to buy them (in fact, I just ordered matching t-shirts for my twin nephews).

Mooo sent me some samples and I have to say the quality is wonderful!!!!

They have lunchboxes, bags, puzzles and much MUCH more.

It was interesting to find Mooo also mentioned in the great fundraising ideas mentioned on my last post.  You can find more information on this under Mooo Fundraising.

To help spread the word about their growing business, Mooo have offered readers of this site the opportunity to win a $50 gift certificate for Mooo.com.au.  All you need to do is visit the site and then leave a comment on this post stating what your favourite Mooo product is and why.

Entries close Sunday February 28th 2010 and the winner will be announced Monday 1st March.  All non winning entrants will be given a 20% discount voucher to be used on the Mooo.com.au website.

So, what are you waiting for?  Go check it out then come back here and comment!

This Giveaway Has Now Closed.

Sorry, I forgot to announce the winners of my giveaway before Christmas.

Congratulations to the following people:

Janelle

Trish

Amy

Emil

Hopefully  you will receive an email soon with details of how to download your copy.  I’d love to hear your feedback on what you think of the product when you have.

I’m no tech-head.  People sometimes mistake me for one when they see how professional this site looks.  The thing is, I didn’t do it!  :)  Now my secret is out.  LOL.  You only have to have a conversation with me and you’d quickly discover how much of a tech-head I’m NOT.  I tend to refer to all things technical as “thingys” and can be overheard muttering “I hate computers”.

I actually don’t “hate” computers.  I love them.  I just get so frustrated that I don’t know how to do more with them.

My regular laptop (not this small one that has become my “main” one temporarily) is getting old and tired.  I’ve tried downloading “clean up” type programs to help it along.  I think all I achieved was to clutter it up more.

So when I was offered a trial of this system mechanic from Iolo, I figured I had very little to lose in giving it a go.

I’d love to give you the techie low down on how it works and what it does, but that’s a bit beyond me.

This is all I can tell you:

1.  It was so simple that even I could download and install it.  And use it.

2.  It has definitely sped up the speed of our computer.

I guess that’s all you need to know really, right?

Here’s a bit of info the company gave me for those who want to know more:

System Mechanic:

• Fixes errors, crashes and freezes
• Boosts Windows and internet speeds
• Restores system stability
• Cleans out clutter and junk files
• Prevents slowdowns and bottlenecks
• Plugs security holes
• Clears out private data
• Extends healthy life of PCs

System Mechanic Giveaway

Christmas is a great time of year for a giveaway isn’t it?  Well, any time of year is probably a great time of year really!

System Mechanic have offered a number of copies of System Mechanic for me to giveaway to my readers.

It’s very simple to enter.  All you need to do is fill in the form below mentioning one of the 5 top causes of a PC slowdown (as mentioned on Iolo’s website).  You can find the answers on the Iolo System Mechanic website.

(just ignore the website field on the form below - I thought I’d told it not to include that.  It’s been a while since I’ve created a cform *sigh*).

cforms contact form by delicious:days

I know it’s a busy time of year but I hope you’ll take the time to enter. Entries close end of the day Tuesday 22nd December 2009 (South Australian time) and I’ll announce the winners on Wednesday 23rd December 2009. All personal information collected will be used for the purpose of this giveaway only and then deleted.

Hands up if you’d like $50 to spend on clothes?

Who wouldn’t right?

To celebrate the launch of their new site Perfect Pose, Ezibuy are giving away a $50 voucher to one reader of this site.

What do you have to do to win?

Simply visit the Perfect Pose website and select your favourite tip for improving the way you pose for photographs.  Then share your favourite tip and why you like it.

Here’s my favourite tip:

This may take some practise, but close your eyes and open them just before the camera snaps and the bulb flashes. This gives your eyes a great sparkle and also minimises the chances of you blinking!

I totally HATE it when you get a photograph that would have been perfect had the subject not had their eyes closed the second the image was taken!!!!  Lleyton has actually taken to doing this because he ALWAYS seems to end up with his eyes closed in photographs.

Your answer can be funny or serious and I will choose my favourite to win the $50 voucher.

Either enter your tip in the comments section below or send me an email (you can do so using the comment form if you don’t have my direct email address).

Entries close 5pm (Sydney time) Friday 8th May 2009 and winners will be announced as part of my Smiley Saturday post on Saturday 9th May 2009.  Voucher is valid until 31st May 2009.

Wouldn’t that be a nice little bonus Mother’s Day gift?

So, go and check it out and get your entries in.

My apologies to international readers but this particular competition is only open to Australian residents.

P.S.  I really LOVE Ezibuy!!!  It’s awesome for people like myself who can’t always get to shops.  I find it to be reasonably priced and great quality.  This has nothing to do with the promotion.  I’m just sayin’…….

Remember a few weeks ago I mentioned a new website and magazine called Way2Go? At the time I said to stay tuned for another announcement. Well, the announcement is finally here (albeit a little later than we’d originally planned but here nonetheless).

Way2Go are running a special competition EXCLUSIVELY for Lightening Online readers. What that means is that you SHOULD enter because your chances of winning a prize are quite HIGH.

Prizes up for grabs are:

1. The five winning entrants will receive 1 x Rebel Sports voucher (valued at $100) and 1 x one year subscription to Way2Go magazine (valued at $35.70)
2. The ten second place entrants will receive 1 x one year subscription to Way2Go magazine

So, what do you have to do?

Simply sign up to the Way2Go website and use the code word “lighteningonline” in the section “Promotional Code”. Then submit your own travel story to the website. Winning stories will be selected by the Way2Go team (check out the Terms and Conditions for more details).

You can find my first article “A Dream Is Born” on the website which details a little of our background story to the Big Trip we’re taking this year. I hope you’ll pop over there and leave me a comment (make me feel loved) and then sign up and submit your own story. I know many of you have great travel stories just busting to be shared.

Competition closes at 9am on 3 March, 2009. Unfortunately, this time round, this competition is only open to Australian Residents (apologies to my international readers - you know I still love you *mwah*). You can view the full Terms and Conditions here.

I really hope you’ll take the time to support this competition as the more successful it is, the more likely we’ll be offered other exclusive giveaways in the future. The total prize pool is in excess of $1000 which is obviously something I couldn’t offer on my own. My thanks go to the Way2Go team and James at Zing for offering this competition to my blog readers.

Well, what are you waiting for? Get over there! Oh, and don’t forget to come back and let me know about your story so I can come and give you some comment love too!